


Childhood Friends

by CrystalMaiden77



Category: Sonic the Hedgehog (Archie Comic)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-27
Updated: 2017-09-02
Packaged: 2018-12-20 17:54:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 87,594
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11926140
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CrystalMaiden77/pseuds/CrystalMaiden77
Summary: A major thing the comics never explained is how Anti-Tails and Scourge met and became friends to begin with. This multi-chapter story sets out to explain how their friendship began, and what happened to make it all fall apart.





	1. Chapter 1

On the first of July, when he was 4 and a half years old, Miles had broken into yet another house to take a water bottle from the fridge, and just as he was about to leave it, the owner of the house spotted him, and shouted, " It's the freak! Get him! "   
Before he knew it, three different teenaged gang members were chasing him down shouting insults and threatening his life, and he was running through the woods terrified, panting in exhaustion and hoping he would successfully evade them.

Just as he was about to completely leave them in the dust, Miles tripped on a tree trunk in the woods and fell to the hard ground, smacking his forehead from the impact and getting grass stains on the front of him. Fear overwhelmed him as he tried to push himself up to a sitting position and get back to running again, only to be slowed down immensely by his coming exhaustion, knowing exactly what usually happened to him in a situation like that. 

" Got ya, you little monster! " a black-shirted wolf Moebian shouted as he tackled him and pinned him to the ground, the rest of his hateful gang catching up with him. The other two teenagers with him, a jackal Moebian and a bear Moebian, both wearing black clothes, soon caught up with him and started kicking him while he was down, and Miles endured the pain with his eyes squeezed shut and his fists clenched, resisting the urge to scream for help, knowing from experience that it only attracted more bullies for him.

The one pinning him to the ground let him go and stood up, only to punch him in the chest the instant he started trying to sit up, sending him falling backwards in pain. He grimaced with his eyes squeezed shut as he was kicked and punched, soon becoming covered in cuts and bruises as his tails, which he would've tried to defend himself with, were kicked and stomped on repeatedly by the jackal across from him. 

Suddenly, Miles heard a ringtone coming from the jackal's pocket, and stared at him in anxious hope as he pulled out his cell phone, hoping he would be called back home. " What, you got everything ready?... Good! We'll be right there! " he said, put the phone back in the pocket of his gray shorts, and said threateningly, " Guess what, mutant?! We're gonna get rid of you once and for all! " 

Miles gasped looking frightened, and as all three gang members started dragging him by the tails through the woods back the way he came, panic ran through his mind and overwhelmed him, making him plead, " No, no, no! Don't do this! " out of desperation, knowing it wasn't safe to scream.

After several painful minutes, they let go of his tails, and the instant he tried to get up to run away, the wolf Moebian went in front of him and grabbed him tightly, and the bear Moebian and him worked together to force him to a standing position before shoving him to a wooden stake with piles of straw on the grass at the bottom of it. 

Miles desperately tried smacking the wolf Moebian in front of him with his tails as he kept him pinned to the stake while the other gang members tied him to it tightly with rope bound in tight knots at the other side of it, but it wasn't long before his tails were restrained by the ropes with the rest of his cut and bruised body. " You'll pay for that, freak! " he shouted furiously. Trying to hold back tears and look brave, Miles shouted back with an angry look, " I'm not a freak! "

The wolf Moebian shouted with his fists clenched, " Of course you are! You're a two-tailed mutant who's stolen from our island for years and caused a spike in thunderstorms! It's your fault this place is called the Island of Storms! It's your fault my dad went out of business 'cause we stopped getting tourists! Either you have some sort of freaky connection with the weather that's causing all this lightning or the universe itself is rebelling against your existence! Either way, you're something that shouldn't exist! You're not a kid, you're not even just a mutant! You're a demon! You're an abomination of nature that everyone on the island is ashamed of, and now we're finally gonna be rid of you forever! " 

Miles gasped as he opened up a box of matches and lit one of them with a cigarette lighter, saying, " Goodbye, Tails, and good riddance! " as the other two gang members glared at him vindictively.

Miles' situation seemed to be hopeless. He was covered in aching bruises and stinging cuts from head to toe, tied to a wooden pole by tight ropes that kept him restrained to it just above the ground, and there were three vicious bullies bringing out matches and setting the pile of straw beneath him on fire, knowing full well that the fire would spread to the pole directly behind him. He was too terrified to even scream, knowing that if he did, it would only attract more people to abuse him. " Please, please, no! I'm too young to die! " Miles thought in despair, breaking out in a sweat and shaking. 

He wished desperately that it would start raining, remembering that lightning storms tended to increase his chances of surviving encounters with vicious townspeople every time they happened, but as he looked up at the clear blue skies, he began to lose hope. It would take too long for the next storm to happen and save him. Finally, giving up all hope, he started to scream in fear as the fire spread from the straw surrounding the stake to the stake itself.

But a second before the fire could spread to him, a blue and black blur sped around the fire beneath him and put it out in an instant by getting the flames blown out from a blue and black tornado of wind. As soon as the fire beneath him was put out, Miles watched in shock as his bullies were suddenly slammed to the ground and beaten up by a blue and black blur moving at an incredible velocity, with what looked like a blue and black sphere with a blur trailing behind it slamming into each bully one by one and knocking them on their backs, the wind roaring heroically behind him. 

After that, the blur stopped moving around at an incredible speed to stand on the ground in front of him, revealing a blue hedgehog looking to be about 12 years old wearing a black leather jacket with a fiery skull and crossbones design on the back, black sunglasses with gray lenses, and black boots. Looking very much like a typical punk, it was shocking seeing him intimidate the people who tried to burn him at the stake instead of joining in.

" LEAVE HIM ALONE! " the juvenile delinquent exclaimed furiously with his fists clenched, as the bullies painfully managed to stand themselves up looking terrified of him. " Oh, shit! Run! " the wolf Moebian exclaimed, and just like that, all of the bullies who were threatening to kill him were running away in a panic. The young criminal shouted after them, " He's a child! " with a vengeful fist in the air as they ran away from him, only letting them get away reluctantly; after all, he didn't know his way around the island, and running after them leaving the kid alone might cause him to not be able to find his way back to him to untie him, rendering his rescue of him pointless. It was more important to untie him first, and plan his revenge later.

When the bullies ran out of sight, the blue hedgehog sighed, ran over to just behind the stake Miles was tied to in a blue and black blur and started untying the knots of the rope holding him to the stake, not noticing how stunned and bewildered the child he was rescuing looked. As he untied the ropes keeping him against the stake, he spoke like a typical teenaged punk in spite of his young age.

The young Scourge the Hedgehog grumbled angrily under his breath, " That'll learn 'em. If I ever find those bastards again, I'll kill 'em, " having almost a reassuring tone finishing his sentence as if he was trying to comfort Miles. He was so focused on looking at the ropes to untie him that he failed to notice that he had more than one tail. Soon, he finished untying Miles and the ropes fell off him, making him land in the burned and singed straw beneath him and have to quickly stand himself up. 

Unfortunately, the bitterness in Scourge's tone came off as so menacing that Miles was frightened enough to yelp and instinctively run away from him the instant he was set free, not trusting Scourge not to hurt him for his mutation as he tried to walk up to him. For all he knew, he only saved him because he wasn't aware of it. The instant he started running, he began spinning his two tails behind him like a propeller and generating a blast of wind that propelled him forwards at an incredible velocity, getting him away from the criminal who saved him within seconds. Shocked and panicked at the injured child he freed running away from him in a yellow blur that almost instantly disappeared over the horizon, Scourge shouted after him in panic, " Hey, wait! " and ran after him in a blue and black blur, not understanding why he would fear his rescuer.

Miles was frightened and confused looking over his shoulder at Scourge running after him, and wondered how for the first time, someone he was running from was able to effortlessly catch up to him. Most of the people he evaded when he ran away from them spinning his tails like a propeller would only be able to catch up to him quickly when he was exhausted, and had to run after him for a long time predicting his planned route through the island in order to finally catch up to him after he was cornered or had collapsed in exhaustion. " How is he catching up to me? HOW IS HE FASTER THAN ME?! " he thought, his brain overwhelmed with panic as he believed he was running for his life, being too afraid to believe in his rescuer's good intentions.

Getting desperate as he ran through the woods, right before Scourge caught up to him, Miles jumped into the air, bent forwards, and started spinning his tails above his head, all in one swift motion, flying away from Scourge just before he was able to grab him. It slightly hurt using his tails to fly from all of the injuries they had sustained in his life, and he looked determined to hide his pain as he flew over the woods above him. Scourge looked up at the sight of him flying away from him with wide eyes and a shocked look on his face, which only made Miles even more upset as he misinterpreted it as a negative reaction, causing him to look away from him and fly higher into the sky before he could see Scourge smile in approval or hear his comment, " Cool! "

Miles sighed in relief, and said quietly, " That was close… " getting further and further away from his pursuer. But it didn't take long for him to realize how tired he was. His tails started spinning slower and slower above his head as he panted in exhaustion, until finally, they stopped moving without his consent and he started falling out of the sky terrified, too tired to even scream, and squeezed his eyes shut in fear as he prepared himself for a hard impact with the ground below and the inevitable beating that would follow.

He was surprised and terrified to find himself landing in the ocean with a large splash, hearing what he vaguely recognized as a scream above the water, unaware that it was Scourge shouting, " No! " at what had just happened. After several seconds of being overwhelmed with fear sinking into the water certain that he was going to drown, the current of the ocean quickly threw him onto the hard sandy beach soaking wet, giving him even more bruises from the rough impact with the sand below him. 

So loudly that he couldn't hear Scourge sighing in relief, Miles coughed up water and gasped for air, and then struggled to crawl up the beach away from the waves hitting him, only to gasp and look scared again at the blue hedgehog grabbing his wrists saying unhappily, " Lemme help, " and pulling him over to the grass uphill. After that, he sat in front of him and pulled his wrists up to his shoulders to bring him to a sitting position. As soon as he let go of him, Miles jumped back in fear, startled from the physical contact from being so close to a potential bully. Scourge asked anxiously, " Are you alright? What the hell happened to you?! "

There was a silence, and Scourge stood up from the ground slowly and stared at him in concern, noticing how even after he helped him again, the injured kid was still trembling from his presence. Miles started begging him, " Please! Don't hurt me! Please! " losing all hope that he could ever escape from him without being caught up to. Looking awkward with looking like a softie, the blue hedgehog said unhappily, " I won't, relax! I'm not gonna hurt ya! Why would I hurt ya after I went through the trouble of saving your life?! I just wanna talk! "

Miles was stunned by that response, and stared at him in a mixture of paranoid suspicion and confusion. After another awkward silence, Scourge took a few steps back to prove his point, giving him some space. He said with a nervous smile, " See? " and forced himself to patiently wait for Miles to get the courage to speak to him again, hoping it would reassure him. He was far from the patient type, but for someone so easily startled, he would have to be.

Miles looked up at him in complete and utter bewilderment, trying to figure out what that hedgehog was up to. No one had ever done that for him before. No one ever gave him some space when he was intimidated by them. In fact, now that he stopped to think about it, he had saved his life, and no one had ever saved his life before. Usually, whenever someone helped him, they would proceed to hurt him right away, revealing that they were only luring him into a false sense of security, or had only helped him from not knowing of his mutation, so this one hedgehog not hurting him by now was very shocking. What made this kid so different? Miles was wary of letting himself believe that he had good intentions, but he still wanted to know exactly what he was planning and why he helped him. After several seconds of careful consideration, he decided to stay where he was and listen to what he'd have to say, with curiosity about his intentions getting the better of him.

" Who are you? " Miles questioned, still being on edge but trying to put on a brave face. Scourge smiled proudly and pointed to himself saying, " I'm Sonic! Sonic the Hedgehog! The world's fastest hedgehog, and the most badass law-breaker alive! I'm here as a tourist for the day, " only for his smile to become more strained as he asked him awkwardly, " But enough about me, kiddo. How 'bout you?... Mind tellin' me your name? " being painfully aware of how odd he was acting and how careful he had to be in that situation. One wrong move and the kid would try to run from him again.

After a brief silence, Miles answered warily, " M-My name is Miles. Miles… um… Prower… " wondering how he could use the information against him. He had to struggle for a moment to remember what his last name was supposed to be; he hadn't heard it since he was three years old living in the island's orphanage, and he barely remembered that far back. No one ever called him by his name. Why would this kid be any different?

Scourge cocked an eyebrow at the child's response and said with a joking jovial demeanor and his hands on his hips, " Miles? Sounds to me like the name of a mild-mannered balding middle-aged office worker. You sure you wanna be called that, kiddo? Doesn't really suit ya, " and chuckled lightheartedly, hoping to lighten the mood. Surprised by Scourge's insensitivity when he was trying to get his trust, Miles replied resentfully with his arms crossed while looking away from him, " It's better than Tails, " and tried to not look too upset. Before Scourge could say anything else, Miles said bitterly with his voice cracking a little by the end,

" Why are you playing these mind games with me? Why don't you just start beating me up for being a freak already and get it over with? " Scourge looked taken aback from being accused of being a bully, and gave him an unhappy and confused look as Miles stared him down suspiciously with a wary and untrusting look on his face. He wanted to meet someone that he could trust without consequences, more than anything. He wanted to have a friend, but he didn't want to get his hopes up. He didn't want to let his guard down just for his hopes to be crushed.

Looking awkward and not sure what to do, Scourge scratched the back of his neck nervously before kneeling down to Miles' eye level and placing his hand on his shoulder, causing him to jump, gasp and flinch in preparation for a punch in the face. " Would you relax and stop being so paranoid? " Scourge said quietly in a mixture of concern and exasperation, trying to keep his patience. This was not a situation he was used to dealing with. He had never tried to be patient and understanding with someone before. He had never acted that compassionately towards anyone before, but if he wanted to keep Miles from constantly running away from him, he had no other choice.

" It's not paranoid if I'm right! Everyone's out to get me! Everyone on the island is against me! Everyone in the world is against me! I have every reason to be wary when the entire world is my enemy! It hates me for being a mutant and wants me DEAD!... I hate them! I hate all of them! Why do they have to hate me?!... Why won't they just give me a chance?! " Miles exclaimed angrily, his voice cracking at various points. 

He was still terrified of the mysterious stranger in front of him holding his shoulder, but since he was certain that being hurt by him was inevitable, he figured he might as well try to look brave before the beat-down and express his frustrations instead of holding them all inside. He was done with trying to get people to like him when all they did was hate him for something he couldn't help. He hated the people who treated him that way! He hated them! But saying those words out loud only made his eyes start to water as he was forced to dwell on how miserable his life had been. 

" It's not fair… " he whimpered sadly with his voice breaking, looking down in an attempt to hide his facial expression, and still not sure if Scourge's concerned expression was faked or not. His eyes were watering, and he had to force the tears back, blinking rapidly and irregularly in desperation to keep his dignity.

" You're right, Miles. It's NOT fair… No one should be treated like that. " Scourge said unhappily with a serious expression, in a quiet voice full of sympathy that immediately got Miles' attention. He had never been called by his actual name before. This stranger was doing nothing but subverting his expectations. It was getting harder and harder for him to believe that he was just lying.

" But I can assure you right now that now you've met me, you're never gonna get hurt by those bastards ever again. You want a bodyguard, kid? You've got one… " Scourge reassured him, with a serious expression that looked rather menacing to him. 

Miles looked away in confusion and thought deeply about whether or not he should believe him. Scourge did go out of his way to beat up his bullies, so it wouldn't make sense that he wouldn't truly be against them. He really did seem like he wanted to find anyone who bullied him and beat them up. He genuinely wanted to be his bodyguard. But why? If he just wanted to express his violent urges and have someone to beat up, why didn't he pick him instead? That's what everyone else did.

" Why? " Miles questioned in a whisper, sounding far sadder than he meant to as he finally looked him in the eyes again. Scourge sighed in reluctance with downcast eyes, and awkwardly admitted to him, " Because while they might think your second tail is a bad thing, I don't… I admit it, okay? I admit it! I don't think of you as a freak... " whispering the final word of his sentence to help diminish its impact. There was a silence as Miles tried to let it sink in, finding the concept of someone accepting of him completely alien and unthinkable, and Scourge let go of his shoulder and continued,

" Don't think this means I'm a softie or anything. It means I'm not a complete idiot like they are! If you didn't have that second tail, you wouldn't be able to fly or be the only person I've ever met who I actually have a challenge catching up with! You wouldn't have your speed, and you wouldn't have your flight. You got a lot of potential, kid, and I respect that about'cha. You're not like most little brats who aren't really capable of anything. You're the best kid I ever met! Sure you're different from everyone else, but that's what makes you awesome! It doesn't mean there's anything wrong with ya! It means you're somethin' special. If the dumbasses on this island are too damn blind to see how cool you are, then that's their loss! But I'm not. You're the coolest person I ever met, Miles, and I want'cha to come live with me. "

Miles gasped, and said sadly, " What?!... W-Wait, y-you actually like my second tail? You… You really aren't just playing tricks on me? " trying to hide the cracking of his voice by whispering. He had an incredibly sad expression on his face, unable to continue hiding how heartbroken he was at being so deprived of compassion and kindness for an aspect of him that wasn't even a flaw. As Miles blinked rapidly and irregularly to try to fight back the tears, Scourge tried as hard as he could to avoid having his expression show how worried he was, but when he realized at last that he couldn't hide it, he stopped resisting temptation and said quietly, " Oh, come here, " and put his arms around Miles in a hug, pulling him close to his chest while overwhelmed with sympathy.  
Panicked and bewildered, Miles exclaimed, " W-What are you doing?! Let me go! Wh-What?! Why are you squeezing me with your body?! " instinctively feeling like he was in danger. Caught off guard from his bizarre reaction, Scourge loosened his grip telling him, " It's called a hug, " and let him go looking concerned. 

Miles immediately pulled away from the blue hedgehog with shades in a confused panic. " I didn't do it too tight, did I?... I-I dunno, 'cause I've never done it before… Never really had anyone do it for me, either… so… " Scourge said awkwardly, his eyes darting around as he scratched the back of his neck in embarrassment. " Hug?... What's a… " Miles said quietly to himself, realizing what that word meant and remembering when he had seen it happen before. He had never been hugged before. Even when his bullies pretended to be nice to him, they never went through the lengths of hugging him. 

There was a silence as he let it all sink in, and after a few stifling seconds, he looked Scourge in the eyes again and said sadly, " I didn't think anyone else knew what it was like to have never been hugged before… "

Scourge sighed at looking like he had gone soft. " Ah, well. I'll have plenty of time to show him what a badass I am, " he thought, and admitted, " You're the only person I've met that I respect. And that's sayin' a lot. I have high standards! I admit it, you're a cool kid, and I wanna get to know ya better. I don't wanna leave ya here on this island all bruised and cut up and have you dyin' on me so that I never see ya again. You're hurt, remember? So unless you have a safe way to get bandages and the like, the smartest thing for you to do right now is come home with me. Those cuts will get infected if they're left alone too long. It's bad enough they're dirty and got seawater on 'em. If anything, you're on a time limit. 'Sides, you're like what, four years old? " 

" I'm turning five tomorrow, " Miles lied in annoyance at being patronized. He was more than capable of treating his injuries himself. He knew that all too well. Although, he'd rather be patronized for being a kid than for being a mutant, so he supposed he should be thankful for the trade-off.

" So five then. Exactly. You're too young to have to be living in the wilderness surviving on your own. Leaving a five-year-old kid alone and injured in the woods on an island where everyone hates him?! I admit I'm not exactly the most responsible guy around, but I still got standards, you know?! I'm doing this for your own good! I'm not taking no for an answer. I'm gettin' you home and off this freaking island. I don't care if you somehow grew attached to it in the time you suffered here. You're better off living with me. I've got a big fancy house just waitin' for you to live in it! With all the food and water and TV that you could ever need! And I'll make you happier than you have ever been! I'm sure of it. "

With the tears finally starting to escape his eyes, Miles looked down at the stinging cuts and aching bruises that covered his injured torso, arms, and tails – especially his tails - and realized that he truly did need his help. If Scourge really did intend to bring him home with him, his life was going to change forever… and for the better. And even if he wouldn't be taking him where he said he would, going with him was still his only chance of getting medical attention quickly and safely, and he was too tired to risk getting it the way he usually did, by breaking into the homes of the people who hated him so much and stealing from them what he needed to survive. He was already a criminal. He supposed that living with a criminal who wanted to protect him wouldn't be so bad. Even if he pressured him into stealing things for him, he wouldn't be doing anything that he didn't already do, so trying to have moral qualms about it would make him a hypocrite. He already broke the law, he might as well continue with it. But there was just one problem he could think of.

" W-Won't the people who live with you have trouble accepting me? E-Even if you like me, which I still don't quite believe you do, there's no way your parents or your friends would, " Miles finally stammered, embarrassed as he dried his tears in front of him. He always tried as hard as he could not to look weak, because that only caused people to laugh at him or be dismissive of him as a crybaby and hate him even more, saying that he had a persecution complex. But Scourge was giving him every indication that he wouldn't do that.

Scourge reluctantly admitted, " That won't be a problem, trust me. My parents care more about their jobs than me, so even if they noticed you with me, they wouldn't get involved. They'd say anything just to get away from me, so even if they don't approve, screw 'em!... The servants at my mansion won't complain, they only care about gettin' paid. And my friends?... Well… I'm thinking of joining a gang some day, but I haven't found anyone willing to work with me yet. Aside from you. " 

Miles said unhappily, " You don't have any friends either? " He didn't know why he was so surprised. Scourge didn't seem like the most likable guy around. He wore a leather jacket and spoke like a punk, after all. Then again, Miles himself used to be a very likable little kid and people still hated him.

" No, not yet, anyway. Until I met you, I've been pretty damn lonely. So if you come along with me, that'll change. It's not just you who's gonna benefit from this, so if you're still all skeptical of my generosity and wondering what's in it for me, there ya go, that's the catch. The closest thing there is to one. So what'dya wanna do, Miles? Do you wanna come live with me?... Or do ya wanna spend the rest of your life alone? " Scourge replied with a serious look on his face. Faced with the threat of losing what might be the only friend he could ever have, Miles started shaking with an upset look before hugging his chest, which was exposed from him not having his leather jacket zipped up, and begging him, " Take me with you! Please! Take me home… "

Scourge sighed in relief at finally getting the kid to change his mind about him, and said to him with a pleased smile, " That's just what I wanted to hear, " and gave him a hug back with one arm and a gentle caress of his head with the other.

After that, he lifted him into his arms, carrying him by supporting his back and the back of his knees, and Miles exclaimed in confused nervousness, " W-What are you doing?! " not being used to someone carrying him without malicious intent.

Scourge rolled his eyes and said with a grin, " It'll be a lot faster if I carry ya home. I can run at the speed of sound after all, and while you're damn fast too, you're not as fast as me. Come on, Tails, it'll be fun! Hold on! " Looking worried, Miles gasped and quickly grabbed onto his shoulders and put his head over one of them, keeping himself as close to him as he could get away with as Scourge started running through the woods with him at an incredible speed, the wind rushing past the two of them.  
" I-If you don't think I'm a freak, then why'd you call me Tails? " Miles said warily, getting suspicious again while still not regretting deciding to come live with him. After all, he was still the person who treated him the best, even if he was insensitive. And Scourge's insensitivity seemed to be more the result of him genuinely not knowing any better, rather than offending him out of genuine malice. That was more than he could say for his bullies.

" It's just a playful nickname, Miles, relax! I don't think Tails has to be an insult. I think it's a great name! You're being named after the coolest thing about you! Why not like a name that suits you so well? It's like how my name's Sonic and I run at the speed of sound! Sure, that makes me different from everyone else, but that's something to be proud of! 'Cause the thing that makes me different makes me better than them, 'cause they don't have the cool powers that I do! Same applies to you! Don't ya think, Tails? " Scourge said with a genuine smile, in a playful friendly tone that Miles had never been spoken to with before. 

Miles was speechless. He couldn't imagine such a hurtful nickname as Tails being anything but insulting. Scourge really was tactless. But he made a good point. Logically, he really should be proud of his second tail because of the useful abilities it granted him, so why wouldn't he appreciate being called Tails if it wasn't meant as an insult? Instead, it was used as a symbol of his competence, of what he was capable of. He wasn't sure if he'd ever be entirely okay with it, but he didn't want to look weak by admitting that and looking like he had been traumatized by his treatment for the rest of his life. So rather than making Scourge think that he had PTSD, he tried to downplay it and change the subject.

" I-It's just that the n-name Tails sounds childish, that's all! Miles sounds more, uh, mature and, uh, sophisticated. It's not like my unique abilities are the only good things about me. I-I'm rather intelligent, too. I-I may even be a genius, to be quite frank, " he said with a forced smile, intentionally using more advanced vocabulary to try to look smart and mature. It wasn't that he didn't appreciate Scourge treating him like a kid, as long as that led to affection and protection. He just wanted to be taken seriously by him, that's all. He had been treated dismissively for his entire life, and while being dismissed for his age wasn't nearly as bad as being dismissed for being a mutant, it still felt terrible to the point of making him worry that he was being thought of as worthless, and he didn't want to be treated like that anymore. He wanted to be treated with respect. 

" A genius, huh? Sounds promising. You sure? " Scourge replied with a grin, realizing that he might be able to personally benefit from being friends with a child who not only had the powers of super speed and flight, but was a genius as well. " W-Well, I haven't actually gotten the chance to go to school, because as you may have already figured out, I don't have any parents to send me there and the schools don't want a mutant there anyways. So m-my knowledge is limited. But I can educate myself if I get my hands on enough books, and what I lack in education, I completely make up for in pattern recognition, and strategizing and, retaining knowledge and so on, so my IQ may be surprisingly high. And I-I've always been interested in music, so if I obtained for myself a violin or piano, I could display my genius through music! I-Impressive, huh? " Miles said, having a nervous smile from insecurity at certain points from knowing that he was trying too hard to impress him. He didn't want Scourge to think he was just going to be a burden on him because he'd have to protect him all the time.

" Yeah, it is! Imagine that, me having a supergenius for a friend! How cool is that?! I'm glad I met'cha, Tails. Meetin' you is the best thing that's ever happened to me! I have a feeling that our lives are gonna get a whole lot better! " Scourge replied, as the two of them approached the luxury ship that he had gotten to take him to the island.

After setting Miles down on the ground to allow him to walk alongside him and leading him onto the deck of the ship, Scourge walked with him on the way to its medical ward, holding him by the wrist to keep him following him after realizing how nervous Miles was at seeing all the people working on the ship staring at his second tail in confusion.

" Just ignore 'em, Miles. If even a single one of these guys is mean to ya, I'll pummel 'em to the ground, " Scourge told him as Miles tried to focus on looking forwards at him and not look at the dozens of confused stares he was getting, with the people looking at him in concern at seeing his wounds first before being distracted from their pity by his second tail, just like what happened with everyone else. Under normal circumstances, Miles would've found the menacing tone Scourge spoke with terrifying, but in the context that he used it in, reaffirming that he would protect him, he found it comforting, but still not enough to distract himself from the fear. 

He couldn't stand the fact that everyone working on the ship was stopping their work and staring at him in shocked confusion and curiosity. " Why can't there be even a SINGLE public place where I'm NOT the center of attention? " Miles thought in hopeless frustration, as Scourge finally brought him into the medical ward of the ship.

As soon as the two of them entered the medical ward, Scourge let go of Miles' wrist and closed the door behind him. They were in a small blue room with a hospital bed and several cupboards and drawers to the right of them, and a nurse was standing at the opposite end of it. Scourge said threateningly, " Hey, nurse! There's a new patient for ya! I'll cover the costs, so make it snappy! " trying to sound annoyed and demanding to mask his concern.

The nurse, a Moebian of the red deer race wearing the typical white nurse clothing, had a serious and deadpan expression on her face that implied that nothing could faze her anymore, only for her to look surprised at noticing the second tail hidden behind Miles' first one, with the five-year-old child instinctively putting his tails behind and below his body in a futile effort to hide the fact that he had two of them. Immediately knowing what she was reacting to, Scourge reminded her with his fists clenched, " Don't say a word! Remember what your job is, nurse! Just treat his wounds, and keep your yap shut! " and grumbled under his breath, " He's been through enough… " This discouraged the nurse from making the sarcastic comment, " Well, now I've seen everything. " She didn't have anything against the child, but she knew that Scourge in his bad mood would never pick up on that. 

Worried from Scourge intimidating her, the nurse quickly took out the disinfectant, cotton balls, and gauze from the First Aid Kit out of the cupboard. From the moment he stepped into the room, Miles was full of anxiety, trembling with his pupils shrunken and backing up against the wall, not trusting her to do anything to help him when no one had done anything like that for him before. When the nurse tried to bring disinfectant-soaked cotton balls to his cuts, Miles gasped and put his hands in front of his body flinching, and shouted hysterically with a panicked frightened tone, " No! NO! NO! "

The logical part of his mind knew that his cuts needed disinfecting, but the emotional part completely overwhelmed him with flashbacks as it endlessly reminded him of how much pain he felt every time he disinfected a cut himself. He didn't want to experience that again, especially not at the hands of someone else. At least when his pain was the result of something he personally did to himself, he knew for a fact that it wasn't because he was in danger. Irrationally afraid, Miles sat down with his back against the wall, and quietly begged, " No, no, no! Stay away from me… " to the confused and concerned nurse, with his pupils shrunken and a scared look on his face.

To Miles' surprise and confusion, Scourge sighed, and told the nurse, " Let me do it. He doesn't trust anyone but me. " The nurse could do nothing but silently hand him her medical supplies in response to that, dumbfounded and stunned by what he was willing to do. Whoever that two-tailed child was, he must have been something really special to have given Scourge the Hedgehog a heart; as far as anyone knew, he had never before felt compassion, and yet here he was, being patient and caring and understanding to an unusual-looking child who was clearly far more traumatized than he was willing to admit. 

After quickly looking him up and down and noticing his torn gloves and worn out shoes, Scourge took it upon himself to take care of all of Miles' injuries, disinfecting and putting gauze on his cuts one at a time with a serious but concerned expression on his face. Each disinfectant-covered cotton ball put Miles through a stinging pain that pierced into his body and tormented him beyond words, and the only reason he didn't instinctively start believing Scourge was hurting him on purpose, was that the entire time he helped him, he was speaking to him in a soft and reassuring tone caressing his head gently, telling him how many cuts were left and that it would all be over soon. 

Both Miles and the nurse were stunned and dumbfounded at the sight of a criminal like Scourge treating someone's injuries instead of causing them, taking care of a five-year-old child's cuts with gentle care when he didn't technically have to. Miles winced, whimpered, and had his eyes squeezed shut with his fists clenched and grimacing every time one of his cuts was disinfected, trying to deal with the pain without looking weak. It had long since been beaten into him that if he screamed, he would only get himself into more trouble.

Eventually, after three minutes had passed, almost all of Miles' cuts were successfully treated and dressed. All except for two. " Alright, now take off your gloves, I gotta see your hands, " Scourge said unhappily with a serious expression that attempted to mask his concern with irritation. Miles looked away from him sadly, with tears threatening to well up in his eyes as he reluctantly pulled off the black cufflinks that kept his gloves from being pulled off him again by spiteful bullies in the night.

The instant Scourge saw what his slightly torn white gloves were hiding, he gasped. Just looking at his ungloved hands caused Miles to be flooded with waves of memories of all the horrible experiences that ended up being the origins of every single scar, burn, and constriction mark on his body, especially his tails. Before seeing it, Scourge had no problem with keeping up appearances by feigning annoyance to hide his pity, but just one look at the child's scarred hands broke his mask completely, causing him to drop his façade without realizing it, and his serious expression was replaced with one of concern.

After staring for a second or two looking even more stunned and horrified than the nurse behind him, Scourge carefully reached out to Miles' outstretched right hand and held it gently from beneath, and dabbed it with disinfectant-soaked cotton for a few seconds before wrapping a bandage around it. When he was finished, he slowly let go of his hand and repeated the process with his left hand, all the while working in silence as he stared at the child's scarred hands speechless, studying every single injury as he tried not to express his hatred for the ones responsible and scare his new friend in the process.

These were not the hands of a child. They were small, but they felt rough and cracked from years of hard work out of a desperation to survive, and were damaged in a sickening number of places. And it wasn't just his hands. All of his fur hid the evidence of him surviving more injuries than any kid he had ever known. His skin was almost completely covered in scars, some old and some new, some going in different ways than others, and not only were there scars, but he could've sworn he spotted the remains of burn marks at certain spots, as well as marks resulting from being squeezed too tightly, a daunting indicator of the horrible experiences Miles had suffered at the hands of the island's inhabitants. 

His entire body was covered in painful-looking scars, but his tails were the most heavily scarred of all, and as he bandaged the cuts on them, with Miles being very worried and reluctant to let him hold his tails still, he could've sworn he saw a circular scar that was shaped like the healed remains of a bullet wound, a bullet wound in his second tail. " Those monsters, " Scourge thought with tranquil fury, trying to avoid showing an angry expression so that he could avoid scaring Miles. " How could they do that to a child?! "  
Scourge was well aware of how new it was of him to be reacting like that to injustice, as if he was some kind of hero or something, and he was frustrated with himself for still having enough of a soft side to care, but at the same time, he was proud that he cared, because he was disgusted to even think about the people who treated Miles the way they did for such a superficial reason. Part of him was boiling with rage at the idea that every single inhabitant of that island would get away with it and he wanted to burn that place to the ground, and if he ever got into a position of power where he could do that to the island, he would destroy it at the quickest opportunity. 

But there was another part of him that was overwhelmed with pity for him, being so horrified and concerned at how Miles was suffering that it completely overshadowed his rage and caused it to be pushed to the back of his mind for the time being. He would take revenge on the island later. Right now, he had a child to comfort, and whether it was new for him to do it or not, it still felt right.

Miles was miserable during the entire experience, and when it was finally over, he sighed in relief, and finally opened his eyes, only to be stunned at seeing the sympathy in the young criminal's eyes and be once again struck silent. 

" How is he, nurse? Is there anything else about his condition I need to know about? " Scourge asked the nurse quietly without taking his eyes off Miles, with nothing but concern in his expression and tone. He was done trying to hide it. The nurse looked him over, examining him without realizing that it made Miles all the more uncomfortable, and said, " He seems dangerously thin. When's the last time you had anything to eat? "

Her question was answered with a silence that filled everyone in the room with dread. If Miles didn't know any better, he'd think that even this random stranger felt sorry for him, but he refused to believe it was the case when it was certainly too good to be true. Scourge told the nurse, " He's just shy, that's all, " and asked him with a serious expression, " Miles? How long's it been? " There was another silence, as Miles looked sadly at the floor with downcast eyes, reluctant to look weak by admitting how hungry he was. When his stomach finally rumbled and gave it all away, he sighed and mumbled, " Three days ago. " Scourge gasped, and the nurse's eyebrows raised at hearing that, and she told him, " P-Please, stand on that scale over there. We need to know how much you weigh. " 

Worried he'd get in trouble with Scourge if he kept not doing what he wanted, Miles reluctantly walked over to the square device across from the door and stood on top of it, feeling unsteady from standing on something that wasn't the floor and uneasy at how vulnerable he felt. He couldn't stop himself from feeling paranoid that having his back turned to her would cause her to yank him by the tails like so many others had done before. 

The nurse examined the unusually low number shown on the scale and questioned, " How old are you? " Feeling ashamed and defensive of his young age and wishing people took him seriously in spite of it, Miles answered, " Five, " with an annoyed expression, even though he was fairly sure it wasn't technically true yet. The nurse responded with a worried tone, " He's under the average weight of a child his age! And that's especially concerning, considering that the weight of the additional tail should if anything make him weigh more! "

Scourge snapped at her, " Hey! " set off from Miles irrationally feeling worried and uncomfortable the instant his second tail was finally addressed. No matter what the context was, Miles couldn't help the fact that every time his second tail was mentioned, he automatically prepared himself for a beating. Realizing why they were upset, the nurse quickly continued, " Not that there's anything wrong with that. T-Taking the weight of the second tail into consideration, he's still worryingly underweight, but he hasn't progressed to the point of starvation. He doesn't need to go to the hospital. "

Still in a bad mood, Scourge yelled from anger born of worry, " He's not starving? He hasn't eaten in three days, lady! I-I can even feel his ribs! What'dya call that?! " Trying to be patient with him and hide how intimidated she was, the nurse explained calmly, " Victims of starvation are a lot skinnier than that. Just be careful not to overfeed him to try to compensate too much. His stomach's smaller than normal at this point, so it can't handle too much food at once. Make sure he eats something nutritious, like vegetable soup or a salad, but don't overdo it. Worst case scenario, it could be fatal. "

Hearing that caused Scourge's anger to die down, and he looked worried again, sighing heavily at the depressing news. All he really wanted was to have a friend, to have someone care about him for the first time in his life, but times like this made it hard to ignore just what he had gotten himself into. He had never experienced anything like that before, trying to take on the responsibility of taking care of a child who was treated with such horrifying cruelty that he was showing signs of post-traumatic stress at far too young of an age to have it. That child was paranoid and untrusting of everyone around him, instinctively viewing the world as his enemy, seeing everyone as a threat, and it was getting increasingly clear that the trauma he suffered from would always continue to haunt him, making him suffer from flashbacks the instant the wrong thing set him off. 

His skin was covered in signs of his abuse, he didn't have even the slightest self-esteem and had to fake it, and all those years of abuse had hardened him to the point where from most people's perspective, his heart turned to stone, and he became the most bitter and vengeful child he had ever met, with a burning hatred for humanity. And he had every reason to be that way, but Scourge still couldn't help but worry that by having a friend with emotional baggage like that, he would be in for more than he could handle. He wasn't used to trying to be patient and understanding and sensitive to someone with such severe psychological issues, and just for the sake of having a friend. Was he really that lonely? 

He would have to be very patient and understanding to him, and he didn't know if his naturally short temper could take it without him yelling at him at least once, and potentially losing his only friend in the process. He worried that he was too reckless and impatient and insensitive to maintain a friendship with such a sensitive and easily startled child without screwing things up.

But in spite of all his worries and doubts, Scourge was still certain he had made the right decision. As difficult as it would be to take on the responsibility of being a friend to a person like that, he would never change his mind about taking him in. Anything was better than leaving him on that island, and anything was better than being alone. Trying to deal with a situation like that tactfully and gently was going to be more than a little awkward for a proud juvenile delinquent like him, but it was worth it, because he couldn't turn back now. He couldn't let him down. That would make him just as bad as his father.

" How much did you get to eat, Miles? " Scourge asked him with a serious expression as he stepped off the scale. Reluctant to give him the answer, Miles hesitated before explaining, " Unless I got lucky and was able to have an unoccupied house to myself for a couple of days, I-I almost never had three meals a day. I was lucky to collect a couple scraps of food here and there. I vaguely recall trying to scavenge from trash cans when I was really young, but the food from it made me ill. And obviously, no one would allow me to simply purchase food with my, unique genetic feature, so I had to rely on whatever I could find in the woods. Berries, mushrooms, wild animals and fish, the occasional fruit every so often. And even then, there's a lot of poisonous food in the woods and determining what was safe to eat and what was not was a dangerous process of trial and error. And I couldn't stay in the forest all the time because the island suffers from very frequent thunderstorms, so I've narrowly avoided being struck by lightning about 32 times. So I was pretty much forced to go into the village sometimes. " 

Miles looked depressed and continued, " Food was always scarce when I was alone. The best I could hope for was that I found a house devoid of people for the moment with plenty of food in the fridge. I don't care that I stole from people, I was doing what I could to survive, and there isn't a single person on that island who hasn't done something horrible to me. They deserve it. All of them do… They took one look at me in the height of all my suffering and treated me like the scum of the earth. That's why I hate people… " He spoke quietly with a depressed tone in his voice that tried to be empty and devoid of emotion in spite of everything he said. By the end, he had nothing but bitterness and resentment in his voice. He hated the people of the island more than anyone else could.

" When was the last time you had a bath? I'm seeing a lot of dirt in your fur. And sand, too, lots of it," Scourge questioned, with an unsettlingly serious expression from hearing everything he had to say. Sitting on the floor from feeling tired, Miles answered, " Um, yesterday. M-Most of the time, I have to cleanse myself in a river. " He added under his breath, " The ocean is too salty for my scars… " not intending for Scourge to hear it.

As Scourge looked even more concerned about him, Miles continued while feeling uncomfortable, " Occasionally I'd have the fortune of being able to take a shower in an unoccupied home, but I only took that risk if I was absolutely certain that the owners of the home wouldn't return while I was there. At least with a shower, I can run out of there quickly if the owner of the house comes barging into the room with a... um, never mind. " 

The instant that final sentence ended, Scourge was filled with dread from his imagination filling in the blanks of what weapons he could've possibly been attacked with in his short lifetime. A knife? A frying pan? A gun? Looking awkward from looking so pitiful for so long, Miles said in a hurry to change the subject, " M-My point is, I'm clean… Well, as clean as one can be when they have to wash themselves in a river. I'm not sick if that's what you're asking. I'm fine. "

Scourge sighed sadly, kneeled to his eye level and told him with his hand on his shoulder, " Well, when we get home, you're having a bath before you go to bed, just to be sure. I don't wanna take any chances. Don't worry, I won't let anyone barge in on ya. My house has three different bathrooms, you don't have to worry about a thing. I'm not having you get sick on your first day movin' in. The fact that you're hurt is bad enough. "

Looking worried, Miles asked, " Are you sure you won't get in trouble with your family for this? For adopting a kid off the streets that you just met? They don't even know me! It might not even matter if they get to know me! The best I can hope for is they'll glare at me every time they see me! And you can't threaten your parents. I don't wanna get you in trouble, Sonic. I-I don't wanna be a burden on you… " 

Scourge reassured him patiently, " It'll be fine. They're always so caught up in their work that they don't care what goes on in their home. They'll barely even notice ya there! They let me do whatever I want as long as I don't bug 'em too much. And again, my parents are rich. It's no trouble at all… "

After a silence where Miles looked worried and hoped he was right, Scourge stood up from the floor and told him, " Now come on. I'll take ya to the kitchen and get'cha somethin' to eat. And I won't let anyone lay a finger on ya. I promise. If somebody so much as breathes the wrong way around ya, I'll pummel 'em to the ground! " in a tone that was a mixture of loving and intimidating. Under normal circumstances, the sight of someone towering over him standing next to him as he sat on the floor would frighten him, but seeing Scourge's hand outstretched waiting for him to take it reassured him, as no one had ever done that for him before. Miles carefully took his hand despite his trembling and allowed him to pull him to a standing position as a result.

Miles had to reluctantly force himself to let go of Scourge's hand, having been savoring the affection he had always been deprived of. Noticing his reluctance to let go and deciding not to press the issue, Scourge brought him out of the medical ward and started walking down the hallway leading to the ship restaurant, holding his wrist gently to show him affection without looking too soft and ensure that he wouldn't run away. He would've held his hand, but his pride discouraged him from doing so, not wanting to look like even more of a softie.

Miles tried as hard as he could to not instinctively look around him constantly and register everyone walking down the hallway as a threat, and forced himself to focus purely on Scourge walking in front of him, staring at the design of the skull and crossbones with fire engulfing it on the back of his black leather jacket, and thinking about how ironic fate could be; the people who were hateful to him were law-abiding citizens and police – with the police being the ones most passionate about hunting him down - and the one person who treated him with respect was a criminal, a punk, a juvenile delinquent, and not only did he treat him with respect, but he appointed himself as his personal bodyguard. As far as Miles was concerned, he was the only good person he ever met.

Scourge brought Miles into the largest " kitchen " he had ever seen in his life, the ship restaurant. Fortunately for him, there wasn't anyone in the restaurant at the time to stare at them the entire time they were there, so for the first time since he was alone with Scourge, Miles began to relax. Scourge walked up to a black-suited man standing behind a counter, put his arm around Miles to hold him close to him in a sideways hug, and said, " I need a steak and a salad for my friend here. Give him the most healthiest salad on the menu, and your juiciest steak! " smiling with the final sentence.

The man went from looking serious to surprised at seeing an anxious two-tailed fox beside Scourge, trembling while attempting to hide his bandaged tails behind him, and Scourge growled quietly, " I won't be having any nasty comments about him, capiche? " not realizing that Miles could hear him. The man said, " W-What h- I mean, yes sir. I'll inform the waiters of your order, " and went into the kitchen behind him, and the two of them sat down at the closest table. Scourge had a suspicion that the man was about to express concern for Miles' injuries, only to shake it off just like Miles did, not believing that he could be that kind.

Sitting at a table in a restaurant for the first time in his life, Miles waited for a few seconds before asking in confusion, " So, we have to wait for our meal? " Scourge reassured him, " Your meal. Don't worry 'bout me, I just ate. And we won't have to wait for long. " Miles nodded, still stunned at the idea that someone was giving him not only a nutritious salad, but a steak as well, and with absolutely no ill intentions. The last time someone gave him food, he discovered that it was poisoned, and he was sick for a week. Not that he would tell Scourge about that. He was already worried enough, and while Miles appreciated the fact that someone was finally fretting over his well-being, he felt like a terrible friend for doing nothing but depressing and worrying the one person who cared about him, and he didn't want to look weak and vulnerable by fully revealing to him just how terrible his life used to be. Used to be… That was a hard concept for him to accept.

" So, Tails? " The sudden friendly sentence from Scourge snapped Miles out of his thoughts and startled him from how sudden it was, and he jumped before finally looking at Scourge's confused reaction and calming himself down. " Y-Yes? " he answered, trying to sound calm and dignified to avoid looking easily startled. He still couldn't get used to being called Tails as an affectionate nickname, but as long as Scourge only said it when he was speaking to him in a friendly manner, he supposed he could change his mind.

" Are ya thirsty? " he asked, his smile becoming forced from sympathy. There was a brief silence, until Miles admitted sadly with downcast eyes, " I haven't had any water for two days. The best I can hope for is I find an unoccupied house to break into and take water from its fridge, but that's a rare occurrence. I wasn't permitted to take a drink from the park fountain, for obvious reasons. Usually I'm lucky if I find a strawberry or apple or the like and that's enough to keep me hydrated. Sometimes I'll boil the water from a river using matches, firewood and a jar I took, because boiling is the only way I can clean it. But hot water tastes terrible, and I never know how long I have to boil it before it's drinkable and some of it leaves the jar when it boils away and I have to gather more, it… I'm sorry, I talk too much. My point is, water's a lot harder to come across than food. I-It's not a big deal, really, I managed. It's just that I was far more likely to get dehydrated than starve. "

Scourge stared at him with a concerned expression on his face. No matter what look someone had on their face when staring at him, Miles still felt uneasy because of it, and he quickly avoided his gaze with a nervous expression. " Damn it… " Scourge grumbled, looking at the table he was sitting at and then at the counter where the man was no longer standing. Miles looked at him again, nervous and afraid at seeing Scourge get angry again. 

" I should've ordered water for ya, too. Damn it! " Scourge responded frustrated with himself. He pounded the table with his fist, making Miles jump again, knowing but not caring that Scourge was only angry with himself, because he knew from experience that if someone was angry at himself, he was still just as likely to take it out on him. Scourge asked him in exasperation, " Why didn't you tell me you were thirsty before we came in? "

There was a dead silence, and Scourge quickly returned to looking concerned as he realized that Miles was trembling in fear of him, intimidated by his temper. He sighed, thankful that he at least hadn't raised his voice at him, and said calmly, " Never mind… " not able to bring himself to apologize. He understood that if Miles was so reluctant to talk about his past that he didn't want to take off his gloves or even tell him he was starving, it only made sense that he wouldn't tell him he was thirsty unprompted, either. " I should've asked you earlier… Some friend I am, " Scourge continued with downcast eyes, making it clearer to Miles that he wasn't angry with him.

" Don't say that about yourself, " Miles said sadly, stunned that he would actually call himself a bad friend after everything he did for him. " You're a wonderful friend. Just the sheer fact that you're allowing me to move in with you without even a day of knowing me proves my point. I deeply appreciate everything you've done for me, e-even if I'm still not completely letting down my guard. You can never be too careful. But that's not your fault. You're a great friend. It's my fault I'm so… difficult… " Miles told him, fully aware of how unusual it was for him to be comforting someone. The last time he tried to comfort someone to make him more liked on his island, he received a punch in the face for his efforts, being called condescending and manipulating, as people were offended by the very idea of being comforted or helped by a freak. He couldn't understand why Scourge would want to have a friend who would come with such baggage, and felt terrible about how he was doing nothing but depressing him with his presence. Scourge wasn't the bad friend, he was. He was worse than useless.

" You're not difficult, Miles. It's not your fault. I-It's mine 'cause I've never had a friend before. I've never comforted anyone like that. It's not something that the world's greatest thief would wanna be caught doin', you know? I'm not used to looking like a softie, but you're the one person I show my soft side to. You've earned that privilege. You deserve it more than anyone, even if it is from me, " Scourge replied, looking awkward and sincere at the same time. Miles felt a small smile on his face, and quickly stopped from being so shocked at realizing it was there. He smiled. He actually smiled! He couldn't remember ever smiling before. And Scourge noticed, and smiled back, but only for a brief moment before looking serious and concerned again. He wasn't exactly doing a good job not reminding him of his past. Miles wanted to look forward to a better future, but Scourge had to ask him a bunch of questions about his past first.

" So what'd you do in the winter? " Scourge questioned. He was going to ask him where he got his red and white shoes and torn white gloves from, but it was easy to figure out by that point that he had to steal them, too. He didn't know how long Miles had been surviving on his own. It must have been long enough that he had forgotten his parents, but he couldn't have been younger than two, because he couldn't imagine a toddler surviving in the woods for long, let alone a toddler that everyone on the island wanted dead, even if that toddler was a genius.

He remembered when he was treating Miles' injuries again, and remembered how torn his gloves were. How were they keeping him warm? All they really did was keep his actual hands from getting dirt on them, and considering the amount of fresh and old scars he had, getting dirty was something he really didn't need, and Scourge tried not to cringe at the thought that simply washing his hands with soap and water could be painful from the soap getting into the scars and cuts on his skin. Miles' shoes were heavily worn as well, and about as dirty as you'd expect the shoes of a kid living in the woods to be.

Miles explained calmly with a depressed tone for most of it, " Well, if I was really lucky, there was an unoccupied house for me to hide in as a squatter, and I'd just sit back on the couch in its living room sipping tea and watching the Discovery channel, but that was the best case scenario. I lived on that island for my entire life, observing the villagers from behind the bushes from afar, so I was able to familiarize myself with their schedules, but only to a certain extent; I still couldn't hear all of their conversations, or see their calendars, so I still didn't quite know when they'd leave or when they'd come back. " 

He sighed sadly, and continued, " The best I could hope for was that someone would leave their home for winter vacation and I'd have a warm place to stay for a while, and even then, I wouldn't know when they'd come back. At least I'd have their television to entertain me, but I had to keep all the doors and windows locked, you know, for obvious reasons. But most of the time, I wasn't so lucky. I could get some winter clothes for myself and hide out in some caves, there's plenty of caves on Coconut Island, and I wouldn't have to deal with the wind if I was in the cave deep enough. But as for food? And water?... Well, breaking into houses was the only way I could get them reliably, which meant spending every single day running for my life... Heh, it's no wonder I discovered how fast I could run after all the times I had to do it! Heh heh heh. Really, um, saved my skin there! Sort of… "

Seeing Miles try to force himself to speak in a lighthearted way about such terrifying experiences was heartbreaking and uncomfortable at the same time, and at the final sentence, Miles spoke far quieter than normal, as if he didn't want Scourge to hear his clarification on how his skin, literally speaking, was not entirely saved, being full of far more scars than it had any right to be. Scourge sighed sadly, which made Miles depressed that he was doing nothing but upsetting the only friend he ever had, and Scourge tried to return to his regular friendly and jovial demeanor as he said,

" Well, at least you were able to make it. You're a lot smarter than most of the kids I've known. It's no surprise you were able to survive on your own! But you, my friend, need new clothes! As soon as we both get home, I'll need to know your glove and shoe size so I can get'cha somethin' else to wear. What you're wearin' right now is pretty worn, so I'm not sure it's keepin' you warm good enough. "

Looking nervous at the thought of Scourge bringing him into a shoe store and him running away from people throwing shoes at him, Miles asked nervously, " How are you going to get it? " Scourge, unaware of why he was worried, put his arms behind his head in a relaxed pose and explained confidently, " I know a guy. I got a lot of connections in the city from being the intimidatin' presence I am, and there's a lot I can accomplish even without it from me being the fastest thing alive. I'll get you some clothes no problemo! You won't even have to come with me. "

Looking nervous and unhappy, Miles asked him, " So do you just spend all day in the city, stealing and picking fights all by yourself? Are you going to keep doing that while I stay home all alone? " hoping he wouldn't sound like a clingy and needy friend by saying that. There was a brief silence before Scourge said with a smile, " Don't worry, Tails, you can come along! " Miles had to hold back a gasp. There must have been so many more people to gang up on him in a city. With a panicked look on his face, he asked, " Are you sure?! "

Trying to reassure him, Scourge told him, " You've got super speed, remember? That and you can fly. So not only will ya make a great thief, but if anyone tries to hurt ya, you can easily get away from 'em! " Looking depressed again, Miles admitted with downcast eyes, " That didn't always keep them from hurting me. Usually it did, but every so often they'd sneak up on me, or attack me while I was sleeping. A-At one point I resorted to trying to sleep on top of a tree branch keeping myself on it all night with Velcro. It worked, but I never stopped feeling like it was going to break off from my weight at any moment, and the Velcro was a little, well, difficult to pull away from my chest. A-Anyways, my point is, what if someone attacks me from behind or from the side when I'm distracted? What if someone throws something at me and I get hurt before I can react? You can't protect me from everything! I don't want to keep you from fully enjoying yourself and doing everything you usually do because you're too focused on protecting me. I want to help you. I want to engage in enjoyable activities with you and be useful to you. I want to be a good friend! Can I really do all of that without getting hurt? "

Wanting him to calm down, Scourge reassured him, " Of course you can! It's just like I said. Take full advantage of your super speed and the fact that you can fly! The two of us running through the city streets will be unstoppable! And if anyone so much as looks at you the wrong way, I'll pummel 'em into the ground! You wanna get back at the people who don't treat ya right? Well, now that you're allied with such a feared criminal, you can do whatever you want! You can finally carry out your revenge and give your bullies what they deserve! Just watch how I fight, and try to imitate that. With enough time, you could be almost as great of a fighter as I am! Although I'm sure you can handle yourself already, but now that you're with me, you'll get even stronger than you ever were before! And pretty soon, nobody will be gutsy enough to so much as look at you the wrong way ever again! You're living the high life now! Just look at you, you're sittin' in a fancy restaurant waiting for a delicious steak and some, uh, salad, and sittin' right across from you is the richest and most powerful hedgehog in the world! You're doing great now! You've got the rich life! "

When he heard confirmation that he was expected to go into a city full of people with him, Miles was uneasy, but he found himself being surprisingly uplifted by his motivational and passionate speech. Before he knew it, he had a great big smile on his face, overjoyed at realizing just how much better his life had become. Finally, at the end of Scourge's speech, Miles found himself cheering eagerly, " Yeah! " 

Happy that Miles was cheered up and finding it cute that he was smiling again, Scourge continued with a genuine smile, " You're livin' like a king! " Miles cheered, " Yeah! " and Scourge exclaimed triumphantly, " Hail to the king, baby! " for the very first time. Miles cheered, " Yeah! " and giggled at the funny image of himself as a king after making a fist pump, so caught up in the moment that he didn't realize how rare it was for him to be overwhelmed with happiness for once, and that the waiter was coming up to the table.

Scourge was anticipating Miles getting startled again at realizing that an unfamiliar stranger had come up to him without him noticing, but to his surprise and relief, Miles was too busy giggling to notice or care. In a genuine good mood again for the first time since he met him, Scourge said to the waiter with a grin, " And bring over a bottle of water, will ya? Cold, straight out of the fridge, " and chuckled as the waiter walked away looking confused at the happy scene in front of him. He had never seen Scourge enjoying himself with a kid before, or with any friend before, let alone a friend with an extra tail.

Miles finally stopped giggling at last, but kept his good mood, having finally let it sink in that there was genuine hope that his life was going to get better, that he could finally have revenge on the people who mistreated him without worrying that they would kill him in his sleep, because he finally had a home, and he finally had someone to rely on. 

Scourge said playfully, " Come on, champ, eat up, " and Miles gladly started eating, alternating with each bite between the high-quality juicy steak and the various vegetables making up the salad. The salad had some salad dressing and tomatoes in it and a larger variety of vegetables in one dish than either of them had ever seen. Scourge looked at Miles with a cocked eyebrow and amused smile at seeing him enjoying the salad even more than the steak, when he personally was more of a meat lover and saw vegetables as something he had to suffer through to avoid getting punished by his parents. Or something he was made to eat as a punishment by his parents. He let his smile fade for a brief moment as he remembered that while most of the time, his parents were neglectful and apathetic enough to let him do whatever he wanted, when they were actually in the room with him and not busy or in a hurry to leave, they were incredibly strict and intimidating.

At least Miles never had to deal with parents like that. But what were his parents like at all? They probably abandoned him because of his second tail, but that wouldn't explain why he was able to survive until he was at least three. He was briefly distracted from his train of thought when the waiter brought the water to the table, and he took it from him and handed it to Miles, instructing him, " Drink slowly, alright? " being worried that drinking too much water at once when he was dehydrated would be more than his body could handle. Miles nodded in understanding, and worried him with his serious expression, only to quickly return to smiling from the taste of his food after taking a slow, careful drink from the bottle of water.

Scourge wondered if Miles used to live in an orphanage rather than simply being abandoned in the woods as a newborn. He wondered if Miles escaped from it because he was bullied too much, or because it burned down. He could've sworn he saw a news report of the orphanage on Coconut Island burning down from one of the island's many lightning strikes at some point. But according to Miles, he had been living in the woods on his own for as long as he could remember, so if he indeed did used to live in an orphanage, it would've been when he was too young to form permanent long-term memories, and he wouldn't remember a thing about it. How did he manage to survive his orphanage burning down at such a young age? Did he know he had super speed even back then?

But he didn't voice any of those concerns, because if he reminded Miles about his past, he would only ruin his good mood, and those were rare enough already. He wanted Miles to focus on the present and how much better it was, and if that meant letting Miles keep most of the memories of his past to himself rather than relive them by talking about them, it was worth it. There was so much he didn't know about Miles' past, but he felt like he knew enough. Scourge kept silent as Miles focused entirely on eating and enjoying the taste of what he ate, having run out of things to say to him from telling him everything he wanted to at the moment and getting all the answers from him that he wanted, and not wanting Miles to take even longer finishing his lunch because he was obligated to take a break from eating to speak to him.

Several minutes later, Miles was finally finished with his steak and salad, and said, " Mmm! Thanks, Sonic! " with a cheerful smile. Scourge gave him a thumbs-up and said, " No problem, Tails! " while him and Miles stood up from the table. His smile became forced when he realized that Miles' good mood would now end from being expected to walk through a hallway full of people to reach Scourge's room in the ship. 

" Now we just need to go to the room reserved for me and wait 'till the ship gets home. It won't be long, just another half hour, " he said with a cheerful tone, walking out of the restaurant while holding Miles' wrist and trying to ignore how filled with anxiety he was. He cringed a little at feeling Miles shaking under his hand, and offered him with a friendly smile, " Hey, how's about I carry you there while running through the hall at sonic speed?! That way, " and whispered to the anxious child, " you won't have to worry 'bout people seeing ya. "

Miles sighed in relief, and wished that option would be available to him more often as Scourge lifted him into his arms, supporting him by the back and the back of his knees and allowing Miles to hold onto him by the shoulders, and the wind started rushing past him as Scourge started running at the speed of sound to their destination, turning as fast as he ran with his heightened reaction times to avoid running into the walls. Miles saw that Scourge was rushing past people, but none of them seemed to react quickly enough to notice his second tail, only seeing him as a yellow blur within a blue one. Miles giggled, feeling happy again at realizing just how much his circumstances had changed, and sighed in relief at Scourge finally bringing him into his reserved room, which had a door leading directly to the deck where they'd leave the ship.

After locking the door to his room out of courtesy for Miles, Scourge said with a smile, " My bed is yours, kiddo! Get some rest. In fact, I think I'll take a bit of a nap myself, " and laid down beside him with his arms behind his head in relaxation. The kid was confused and surprised at someone lying down beside him, but all he could focus on was how soft the bed was. And that was just the bed of Scourge's ship. He couldn't imagine how soft and warm the bed of his guest room would be. Imitating Scourge's relaxed pose unintentionally, Miles put his arms behind his head and sighed happily, thinking, " Sonic was right. I'm living like a king. It's about time the world started making it up to me. "

After a half an hour where the two of them relaxed, Miles was startled by hearing a woman announce over the intercom, " The ship has now reached its destination. I repeat, the ship has now reached its destination, " and jumped out of bed with a yelp at hearing a stranger's voice in his room. Looking around in a panic, he soon realized that no one was in the room but Scourge, who quickly stood up from the bed and smiled at him in a way that was slightly forced from his concern over him. " Look alive, Tails! We're almost at your new home! And I'm gonna get ya there faster than you can blink! " he boasted cheerfully.

He lifted Miles into his arms again before running at the speed of sound out of the room, off the ship's deck, and through the streets of a city full of skyscrapers, running along the sidewalks and occasionally crossing the street at a speed that made him look like a blue, black, and yellow blur, yellow because Miles was in his arms. But Miles didn't find himself in a good mood this time. All he could think about was that people other than Scourge were living in his new house, and he was dreading having to meet them.

Finally, after several minutes of the wind rushing by him as the city flew past him, Miles was put down in front of the gate of an impressive-looking mansion that belonged to Scourge's parents. Scourge pressed the button on a black device near the gate and said, " Sonic here, " and the gate was opened by the security system as a result. 

" Come on, Tails! " he said cheerfully, and ran up to his front door at the speed of sound, causing Miles to quickly run after him to catch up with him as he held open the front door for him jokingly with a grin, knowing he was usually the opposite of a gentleman. " Let's go to the kitchen and get'cha some ice cream, " Scourge said happily with his arm around him in a friendly manner, which only made Miles feel a little better as he hoped that no one would see him as they walked into the kitchen together.

He was wrong. Scourge's parents were in the kitchen, or what Miles assumed were his parents; two blue hedgehogs, the female one with short hair in a bun wearing a Bluetooth headset phone and a black business suit and the male one wearing a fancy suit and tie getting some potato chips for himself in a bowl. To Miles' surprise, the two adults only looked at him in surprise and confusion for a second before immediately focusing again on what they were doing, having never even stopped. Scourge's mother barely paid him any attention, being too focused on talking on her Bluetooth phone to her business associates. Scourge's father did in fact notice him and Miles, but didn't seem to outright hate him. He asked with a bored look and a raised eyebrow, " Who's this? " While he was clearly surprised at seeing his second tail, he was polite enough to not comment on it. 

Miles was struck speechless. If he didn't know any better, he'd assume that Scourge's father was more confused about why he was there than the fact that he had two tails. Miles looked over at Scourge's mother in stunned confusion as she just walked out of the kitchen not paying any attention to him or his extra limb, and then looked at Scourge's father again, feeling more dumbfounded than scared.

Scourge, satisfied at getting his father to actually talk to him for once, told him with a smile while getting some ice cream out of the fridge, " Meet my new friend Miles! I call 'em Tails. He's gonna be living with us from now on! " and smirked at the end of it, outright hoping that he'd get his father annoyed with him. As Scourge used the ice cream scoop to get the chocolate ice cream in a bowl for Miles to enjoy, his father Anti-Jules looked at him skeptically and deadpanned, " Well, I hope you're prepared to take on the responsibility of giving us another mouth to feed. If you want him to live with us, I'm expecting you to cover the extra costs. " Scourge looked worried at hearing that.

So surprised at his lack of antagonism for him that he couldn't hide it anymore, Miles asked him impulsively, " S-So you're really alright with me living here? You don't hate me? " looking sad at the final sentence. The man gave him a strange look, but to his surprise, it wasn't because of his second tail. It was because of what he said. " No, I don't hate you. Just don't cause trouble in the house, " he told him with a serious expression masking his concern, and left the room to focus on his work some more, wondering if the kid had a rough past.

Miles stared at Anti-Jules as he left the kitchen, still dumbfounded and confused, and Scourge snapped him out of it by saying, " Here you go, Tails! Dessert! " and handing him a bowl of chocolate ice cream with a spoon. Miles stared at the ice cream in confusion before carefully sitting at the kitchen table, and after instinctively hesitating from remembering what happened the last time someone gave him food, he finally started to eat the three scoops of ice cream in front of him. He still couldn't get used to the idea that things were really going that well for him, or going well at all. Usually, good things only happened to him to bring his hopes up before crushing him with disappointment.

Scourge, wanting to distract him from his inner turmoil and get him in a good mood again, pulled out of the cupboards some chocolate syrup and said, " How 'bout some chocolate syrup to make it taste even better? I know you want some! " handing the bottle of syrup to him with a grin. Miles was still confused, but after putting it on his ice cream and tasting it at last, a small smile finally crept onto his face. He never had to deal with the horrors of his past again. With a steady food supply, a warm and safe home, a friend he could rely on, and soon some new clothes to keep him warm and covered, he finally didn't have to worry about whether he'd live to the next day. He was free.

But what about Scourge? How was he going to get the money to support him at such a young age? Miles' smile quickly left and he said in a depressed tone, " I'm sorry you have to cover the costs for me living here. I didn't mean to be a burden. " Scourge, who was standing on the other side of the table about to sit down and eat some ice cream of his own, turned away from him unhappily at hearing that.

There was a silence, and Miles stared at Scourge from behind nervously, hoping he wouldn't turn around and lash out at him from the stress. " I'll get the money for you. You don't have to worry about a thing. I won't be a burden, " Miles promised him nervously, trying to stay calm.

To his relief, Scourge turned around without looking angry with him, and said to him with a smile, " Thanks, Tails. " He stopped smiling and continued, " But you don't have to do that right away. You're still hurt, and after everything you've been through, you've earned a break. You take some time to rest until you're back in fighting condition. You deserve to spend a few days not in danger for once. Take the guest room, kick back and relax, maybe I'll get'cha some books! And I'll show you around the mansion so you can find our piano and violin, and maybe I'll find somebody to teach ya! And when you're all healed up, we'll go out nabbing some loot together, just the two of us! " 

Miles smiled. He wasn't entirely comfortable with going out stealing things that weren't necessary for him to keep living, especially when the people he'd be stealing from hadn't mistreated him yet. But he didn't want to risk losing his only friend by looking self-righteous in front of him, so he said with a sweet smile, " I look forward to it! Thank you, Sonic! Thank you, for everything you've done for me. "

After Miles finished the first scoops of ice cream he'd ever been given, his previous injuries already covered in gauze and healing, Scourge gave him a full tour of his parents' house to get him familiar with his new home. Giving Miles that tour was a learning experience for him that taught him some unsettling things about the child's past.

Miles didn't like being in the kitchen while the chef was using a knife, and Scourge had to shush him and slowly usher him out of the room. Miles didn't fail to realize, though, that the servants of the home gave him a very brief confused and surprised look before immediately going right back to doing their jobs, instead of making a snide comment at best or attacking him with a knife at worst, and he was dumbfounded and speechless at their apathetic reaction.

Later, Scourge showed him the living room, saying unhappily, " My ' parents ' like it here. You don't really need to be here, since you've got a TV in your room and all. " He didn't want to encourage Miles to spend more time with his neglectful parents; for all he knew, that would only cause him to annoyingly side with them when they nag him. With the intent of Scourge's discouraging going right over his head, Miles asked, " I've always wanted to know, what's that called? What's it do? " pointing to the right of the television.

" Oh, that? That's a fireplace! It's all warm and toasty. Wanna try? " Scourge said cheerfully, only to stop smiling upon turning to Miles and realizing how the mere mention of fire frightened him. " N-Never mind, " he said quietly, remembering his previous experience with fire, and faked a smile walking up to him as he said, " Let's look at the rest of the house, shall we? " getting him to follow him out of the room.

Being even so much as near the basement's washroom filled him with dread, causing Scourge to have to reassure him that, " You'll never have to use it, " and bring him to the " much fancier one, " upstairs, not wanting to think about why he might have had that kind of reaction. Miles looked uneasy at seeing a cleaning spray on top of the shelf near the toilet, and asked quietly, " I-I hate the smell of those things. Do the servants use it often? "

There was a brief silence, before Scourge hid it in the nearby trash can and said with a sly grin, thumbs-up and wink, " Not anymore. " He tried his best to appear lighthearted as possible and give Miles hope for the future, but it was hard to ignore the worrying implications of just how much abuse he had been through. " Did… people use those sprays on you? " he asked nervously, and Miles nodded reluctantly, wishing he wasn't so easy to read.

" Figures. The bastards. Don't worry, pal. Someday the bullies on that island will get what they deserve, " Scourge said resentfully. Upon noticing that his expression only made Miles nervous, he smiled again, and said, " Now I think it's about time you took a bath to get all those stains out of your fur. " Miles looked down at himself sadly at the look of all the dirt, grass and sand stains in his fur, and Scourge continued cheerfully, " What, you think I'd forget? Come on, get in there before ya get sick. Don't worry, I'll replace the bandages and stuff when you're done. And I'll keep the door locked so no one will go in on ya. "

Scourge quickly ran to the nearby closet and back to bring a washcloth to the bathtub, and put beside it a cup with liquid soap. Miles asked him nervously, " That tiny bathroom in the basement can't be locked from the outside, can it? " His pupils shrinking a little from briefly wondering what kind of experience would make Miles afraid of that, Scourge hurriedly said forcing his smile, " No, no, it can't, no one uses it anyways. Besides the servants. I'll be in my room watchin' TV. Call me when you're done. "

After Scourge closed the bathroom door behind him leaving him alone, Miles hesitated a bit before taking off his worn gloves and shoes, and turning the knob to fill up the bathtub with warm water. He waited impatiently for the water to fill up, and eventually climbed in when it was ready for him, soon smiling at the warmth. With that, he proceeded to clean the stains out of his fur with a washcloth and soap, awkwardly trying to wash around the gauze and bandages that hurt just to touch. It had been so long since he had taken the risk of taking a bath instead of a shower he could quickly escape from, and it felt so good knowing that he was safe doing that for the first time that he could remember.

After he was finally done, he left the bathtub, drained the water, toweled himself off, called for Scourge, and winced and grimaced as the hedgehog took off his soaking wet bandages and gauze to replace them. " Thank you, " Miles said politely when it was all over. Scourge said, " No problem, " standing up from the floor, and started admiring himself in the mirror upon noticing his reflection in it. He said proudly, " You're gonna see, Miles, that when I'm older, all the ladies will love me! "

Scourge noticed an uncomfortable silence rather than Miles happily agreeing, and his eyes were soon drawn to Miles' reflection in the mirror, showing him that the kid was sadly looking away from it in disgust, hiding his second tail behind his first one. Scourge didn't fail to notice, and sighed quietly, before giving him a reassuring shoulder rub and saying, " Don't worry, kiddo. I'm sure the ladies will love you, too! Come on, you should get some sleep early, you've had a hard day, " as he walked him out of the room and led him to the guest room he would sleep in.

He enthusiastically talked about the television in it, explained that he would be the one in charge of him since he was the older and wiser one there, and left after assuring him that he would have an excellent breakfast.

Miles' dream the first time he slept in that house was one full of guilt and self-loathing. For the first time, his bullies in his nightmares called him not just a freak, but a criminal, demonizing him even more than they already did. He ended up waking up very early in the morning and crying until it was time for breakfast, desperately wishing that his only friend was there to comfort him, and as a result, he was visibly tired when Scourge cheerfully got him up for breakfast, and he was determined to not let that ruin the rest of his day. After all, he was no stranger to being sleep-deprived, and recovered from it pretty quick considering how well he slept in that bed.

Miles couldn't believe how much he enjoyed the breakfast he was given. It was an excellently cooked assortment of bacon, toast, and a cheese and mushroom omelette, that Scourge was sure to get made to welcome him to the family. He had never enjoyed a breakfast so much in his life. No one had ever cooked him breakfast before. He had cooked breakfast for himself during the times when he was hiding in unoccupied homes, but it felt so much better having someone else cook for him, like he was being provided for instead of having to take care of himself.

" Thanks, Sonic! O-Oh, and you too, chef, " he said, nervously giving the proper person the credit they deserved while feeling very shy about speaking to a stranger. At some point during breakfast, he jumped startled at hearing a fork scratching against a plate, and stayed nervous and on edge for a few minutes afterwards, causing Scourge to worry about him even more. Fortunately, that was the only instance where he didn't have a smile on his face.

Shortly after everyone finished breakfast, Scourge used a stolen roll-up tape measure to measure Miles' feet and gloves to get his glove, torso and shoe size, and then said cheerfully, " Why don't 'cha watch TV in your room for a little while? I'll be right back, " before speeding away in a blue and black blur. 

Scourge knocked on the door to his room hours later and opened it with a smile, giving him some brand new gloves, a black leather jacket without a design on it, sunglasses with dark blue lenses and gray frames, and black boots, saying, " Got'cha new clothes! What did I tell ya?! Here you go, buddy! " with a great big smile on his face. His new gloves were white and were small enough that they failed to cover his wrists. Why? Wouldn't it be safer to have more of his skin covered and thus protected?

There was a fourth object that Scourge had carried into his room and set down next to his bed, and it was a box covered in colored paper with a bow on the top. He handed it to Miles with a grin and said, " Happy birthday, Tails! Open it up. It was a bitch to wrap, but for you, it's worth it! " and Miles proceeded to tear open with difficulty the giftwrap paper to find a white box, which he proceeded to open by the lid at the top, looking stunned that Scourge had given him a birthday gift. He was expecting him to get him new clothing, but he didn't have to get him an extra gift! Let alone go through the trouble of figuring out how to wrap giftwrap paper around a box, when he could've just given him a regular box with a gift in it and called it a day, or not give him any gift in a box at all. 

He was really dedicated to being a good friend to him. It may have been because he knew how inexperienced he was with that kind of thing and was overcompensating to make sure he wouldn't lose his only friend from a lack of social skills. Or maybe he just really liked him. At the moment, Miles was too focused on what was in the box to ponder about anything else.

The box contained black wristbands, which he put on his wrists with a smile, and looked over at Scourge, who was smiling. " Good, I got the right size. Now flip that small switch on the side of the wristbands! " Confused, Miles followed his instruction, and was stunned to see small metal spikes come out of the first wristband, revealing that he had given him a spiked bracelet as a gift. 

" Wow! This is the coolest gift EVER! " Miles exclaimed, so happy that he forgot to try to speak in a sophisticated manner. He eagerly flipped the switch on the other bracelet to activate its spikes right afterwards with a delighted smile. " Aw, you really like 'em? " Scourge said with a confident smirk, proud that he was able to properly guess what kind of gift he would like after only a day of knowing him. He had never gotten anyone a gift before, let alone someone he just met, so he was worried he would screw it up from lack of experience.

" It's perfect! How positively delightful! " Miles complimented in a more sophisticated manner, and giggled, feeling more at ease from the idea that he would be wearing something that would intimidate the people of the city into thinking that he shouldn't be messed with, and that he meant business. " Oh, thank you, Sonic! Thank you! " he said happily, and turned off the spikes before clarifying, " Of course, I'll have to be careful with these to avoid poking myself, but I won't leave the house without 'em! Thanks, Sonic. I've never gotten a birthday present before, let alone more than one… "

There was a silence as he looked sad, and he admitted, " Well, actually I'm not even sure if I got one right now. I have no way of knowing when my birthday is, to be honest. I barely remember my experience in the orphanage I used to live in before it burned down from being struck by lightning. All I know of it is that I was told why I was there, and my full name, just barely. I have no vivid recollection of anything about the orphanage. But knowing how my life has been, perhaps that's for the best. " He sighed, slightly frustrated with himself for making himself sad again. He could be having the happiest experience of his life and all it would take is for him to be reminded of his past and he'd stop being able to appreciate it.

Trying to make him feel better, Scourge sat down beside him and put his arm around him in a sideways hug, getting his attention immediately, and reassured him, " Well, you chose a great date, kiddo! Your birthday's right in the middle of the summer, and that's the best time for a birthday! Doesn't matter if it's not your actual birthday, 'cause it's the thought that counts! It's all about celebrating the fact that you were born, with the person who cares about you the most. The exact date doesn't matter as long as it's celebrated. " Miles smiled. He never had anyone to celebrate his birthday with, and now that was finally going to change.

" And tell ya what. For dessert, I'll make sure the chef bakes you the tastiest cake you've ever eaten! How does that sound? " Scourge said cheerfully, letting go of him and getting off the bed. Stunned, Miles replied almost dazed from content, " Cake? You mean, a birthday cake?! That sounds wonderful! "

Several hours later, he was invited into the kitchen, and gasped sharply at seeing candles lit on top of the chocolate-looking dessert on the table. Scourge quickly realized what was worrying him, and said, " I-It's okay, Miles! You blow them out to make a wish! It's a birthday tradition, " with a nervous smile. Miles took a few seconds to calm down, and laughed nervously going up to his seat, self-conscious of just how many times he had looked scared in front of him already. He blew out the candles as fast as he could, trying to ignore the stench of smoke that they left, and not-so-subtly backed his chair away from the chef in fear as he leaned over to cut the cake for him, removing the candles beforehand. With that, Miles enjoyed eating a chocolate cheesecake with Scourge, having never tasted anything of the sort before.

When the two of them were finally done, Scourge asked, " Want any more? " staring at the rest of the cake longingly. Miles shrugged with a smile and said generously, " I'm full, but you can have some more if you want. " Scourge eagerly gave himself another plate of it, and Miles worried briefly that he'd give himself a stomach-ache, before saying happily, " It was delicious! Though not as much as tea, and not as much as the broccoli, " referring to the supper he had right before it. Scourge gave him a confused look, and then ruffled his hair and chuckled saying lightheartedly, " You're weird, " rolling his eyes at his strange tastes. " I'll make sure to put tea on the grocery list from now on, " he continued.

This gave Miles mixed messages, as he was very upset at being called weird again, but loved the affection he was clearly getting, and this left him looking sad and staring into space for a couple seconds after smiling from it. " What's wrong? " Scourge asked when he finally noticed his sad look. " Y-Yeah, I, I am weird… " Miles responded sadly with a forced smile, trying to hide the fact that he was annoyed with the only friend he had.

Realizing he had screwed up, Scourge stammered a bit before saying, " Don't worry, Miles, I was just joking around. I like that you're different from the other boring people. It's part of what makes ya so lovable! " He promptly felt embarrassed at letting that last sentence slip out, but his regret faded when, after staring at him stunned letting it sink in, Miles got a great big smile on his face and embraced him in a hug, not even caring that he was still sitting on a chair.

" Lovable! Wow… I'm loved?! " he exclaimed, and Scourge took a second to return the hug from how surprised he was at it. Realizing he had to react quickly out of the risk of hurting his feelings, Scourge figured he might as well be completely honest while he was at it, and admitted, " Yeah… 'Course I love ya… Screw my parents, you're my real family! " It had been so long since Scourge had bothered trying to tell anyone that he loved them, and for the first time, he was able to hear it back.

" I love you, too! You're the best friend ever! " Miles replied, overwhelmed with joy. He couldn't believe it. For the very first time, he was loved. He was worried that it wasn't really true, but now he had confirmation of that without a shadow of a doubt, and it felt incredible. He would never forget how happy that made him, to finally hear those words.

He stayed in Scourge's home that week while he recovered from his injuries, watching educational TV shows in his bed and reading the various educational books that Scourge got him from the library. It was a rather uneventful week, especially for Scourge, who mostly had to stay home rather than breaking the law because he knew how sad Miles would be if his only friend spent barely any time with him. There wasn't much excitement, but being able to spend quality time with the first person to really like him made it all worth it, and while he wouldn't admit it to anyone but Miles, he ended up finding the educational shows rather interesting, as useless to him as the knowledge was.

After Miles recovered from the cuts on his tails, hands, and torso, Scourge took him to visit every part of his city over the course of a week, including some of the places he'd find out Miles didn't like. Miles wasn't entirely happy with leaving the house and being stared at by strangers because of it, and asked him standing at the front door, " Wh-What if I get separated from you? What, what if you go left instead of right or something and I turn the wrong way when we're running? What if… "

Scourge looked sad briefly, and said with a reassuring smile, " It'll be fine. I promise. I don't change directions that suddenly. I mean, I can, but I won't if you don't want me to. Besides, your reaction times when you're moving at that speed will match mine, so you'll probably react in time and make the same turn I do. " There was a silence as Miles still looked scared and stared at the front door full of dread.

Knowing he wasn't usually that responsible, Scourge said with a nervous smile, " And hey, if we do ever get separated, here's the plan. Jump into the air and fly high up enough that I might be able to see you over those buildings and, uh, if I can't see where ya are, go back home. You've got a good sense of direction, right? " Miles replied, " Right, " having learned which way was north and gotten it in his head from finding the Northern Star in his island's night sky. He was at the point where he didn't even need a compass.

" But will you notice in time? " he asked, thinking about how if people notice him flying, he'll have to deal with them gawking at him until he flies away. " Sure I will! I'm always gonna be focused on where ya are, I'm never gonna wanna leave ya behind! I wanna keep you safe, and make you, happy... Without you around, it'd be kinda empty-feeling, you know? " Scourge said cheerfully ruffling his hair with the first sentence, and feeling increasingly self-conscious about what he was admitting. He had never cared about someone else so much before, and he hoped the people of the city wouldn't stop being intimidated by him because of it. He'd have to try extra hard to be menacing with people knowing he became best friends with someone so young and innocent, that he'd always be protecting. At the very least, what he said was making Miles feel better, and that made him smile.

" Now come on, kiddo, it's sight-seeing time! " Scourge said eagerly, and held open the door for Miles as he walked out of the mansion, stepping out to the front yard for the first time in a week. Was he truly ready? He had grown fond of spending all his time in Scourge's parents' house hiding from the judgmental people of the world, and now he was expected to go right back to spending most of every day outside, being judged, and now even worse than before because he was going to be an accomplice to a criminal.

The cuts on his torso, hands and tails were still healing, but their presence was no longer obvious from a mile away making him look like a vulnerable target, with the red stains having long since been washed out of his fur, and the healing process being almost completely finished with the gauze and bandages off him at last. He could feel the wind on his face and how it had stopped stinging what remained of his injuries, and as cloudy as the sky was, there was still a certain something about being out in the sunshine that felt right. He supposed being out in the city wouldn't be so bad, especially since it had a different atmosphere from the island he spent his life on, and that alone made it feel a lot better, even if it did have more people.

Miles looked himself over briefly as Scourge walked up to him closing the door behind him. He put his dark sunglasses over his eyes to better hide the fear in them, and briefly fretted about whether he should zip up his leather jacket for better protection and warmth or keep it unzipped like Scourge. Then he smiled a little at how he thought his new boots looked cool, and flipped the switches on his black bracelets that would make them look spiked again as he would do every time he'd leave the house, smirking a little bit in a failed attempt to imitate Scourge's sly grin that just made Scourge find him cute.

The blue hedgehog beside him put his shades down over his own eyes, opened the large towering black gate blocking the way to his house with a simple push, and said with a grin, " So taking off from here in 3, 2, 1, " and when he said, " Go! " Miles was fully ready to start running alongside him as they moved at slightly below the speed of sound, exiting the front yard at last.

While Miles was able to pretend he wasn't scared on the way to the city, that façade broke the minute he started seeing cars driving on the roads, roads that he normally didn't have to run on at all. He wished he could just fly over everything, but he couldn't fly nearly as fast as he could move by spinning his tails behind him, and that meant that if he wanted to avoid slowing his friend down even more, he had to contend with being close to the ground, close enough that he could get hit by any cars driving on the road as they ran across it.

While Scourge stuck to the sidewalks most of the time, every so often he just had to run across the street to get to his destination, and the sheer anxiety of having to keep up with him during that was hardly something that could easily be gotten rid of. He was worried about the potential consequences of voicing his concerns and complaints to him, when he was already forcing him to run slower just so he could keep up.

What Scourge didn't realize was that one of the biggest things making Miles nervous was the fact that there were cars driving around him, and with their running through the city so quickly without stopping to look both ways before crossing the street, Miles hated every time they left the sidewalk. The last thing he wanted was to be hit by a car again. And knowing Scourge and his recklessness, it was possible that would happen to him as well. What if this cost him the life of the only friend he ever got to have? It was bad enough that there were people everywhere, but flying metal death traps blistering through the roads he needed to run along made the city almost unbearable, and he had to force an angry menacing look on his face to hide the overwhelming fear for his life. He only hoped the cars were something he could get used to.

There were several different places in the city that had things about them that made Miles uneasy. In the zoo, he was nervous just at seeing the animals at all, saying, " I-I don't like this place… " even though he knew the animals were in captivity and couldn't attack him. That caused Scourge to worry about just how many times animals had hurt the kid out in the woods for him to develop a paranoid fear of them in general.

It had to take the course of several days for them to eat lunch at every single restaurant and diner in the city, since they visited one a day, and every time Scourge brought Miles into one of them, he noticed how nervous he was trying to eat the food from it. And after they had eaten at every restaurant once, they would revisit all of the restaurants, spending each day's lunch with Scourge telling Miles to try something new on the menu, until eventually, he would be able to say that he had tried everything the restaurants of the city had to offer. He would appreciate everything he would eat from the sheer fact that it was food, but he would like the healthy food more because it was better for staying alive.

The first restaurant he took him to, on the first day he was showing him around the city, was essentially the Moebian equivalent of a Burger King's. Scourge, after forcing the people in line to let him and Miles order first as he always did in lines, and reluctantly handing his stolen money to the worker behind the counter, brought the cheeseburger and veggie burger outside for Miles' sake, and they started eating the lunch they had ordered, sitting outside near the restaurant window.

He noticed Miles' hesitation to eat, and smiled saying playfully, " You sure you really want veggies in your burgers? You don't seem that eager. " Miles shook his head and explained nervously, " It's not that. What if they put something in our food to make us sick? What if they, you know, did something with it to spite us? " Scourge once again saw that familiar look on Miles' face as the kid stared into the distance a thousand yards away full of dread, looking haunted by the memories of his past, and even he was worried for a little while, knowing full well that people making food in restaurants did that to spite him occasionally. But after briefly looking beneath the bun of his burger, he reassured Miles,

" Don't worry about it. They won't do anything that makes me mad. There's not that many people stupid enough to take that risk! And since you're with me, they're gonna know they can't do anything to you either, 'cause I would make them pay if they did. Just eat, alright? I paid for it, after all. " Miles peeked beneath the bun of his veggie burger, nodded, and took a bite of it quickly, smiling after tasting it for the first time.

Scourge smiled warmly at seeing how happy it made him, while also being amused once again at how Miles was the only kid he knew who appreciated vegetables that much. Staring ahead eating his burger with a cute little fox sitting right beside him, Scourge thought, " I guess I should be grateful he likes veggies that much. Maybe he wouldn't have lived for that long with barely any food if he didn't get such a taste for healthy stuff… The poor kid... Damn it. He's not making me go soft, is he? I've, never been so worried about anybody before… 'Course, he's got plenty to be worried about, and he's the only one who knows how great I am, so I got every reason to care, but… I told him I'm a badass law-breaker and aside from cutting in line, I haven't really proven my point. But does he care about that at all? He… still looks really happy with me… "

After a brief hesitation, he asked, " Hey, Tails? " this time making sure to speak a bit quieter than normal to avoid startling him again. " Yeah? " Miles said between bites, looking over at him. A bit awkward, Scourge explained unnecessarily, " You know what I meant by I paid for it, right? Like, I usually don't pay for stuff. It's only in places where I pretty much have to wait to get stuff prepared for me, where I have to count on the people running the place being willing to serve me and letting me come back, you know. 'Cause I have to specifically tell them what I want to make sure I get what I want, and I have to wait for them to finish making the burgers, I can't just find my order already made wherever it is and take it. B-Basically I follow the rules with these places out of necessity. That don't mean I'm some, boring rules-following guy like everybody else, oh, no! It's like I said earlier, Miles, I'm the fastest thief in the world! But some places are just too complicated to take what you want from. "

Miles nodded politely, not really seeming to be fazed by it. " That makes sense, " he replied after swallowing his most recent bite of his lunch. " So you don't mind? You don't think I'm just… " Scourge said in confusion, looking away from him as he realized while speaking that he was revealing that he cared about what he thought of him. Did he really grow that attached so quickly that he was outright trying to impress him? " I always care about my image, this is nothin' new, " he thought. He was always the type to show off, no matter who was in front of him.

" No, no, it's fine. I'd do the same thing. If it's completely impractical, it seems silly to break a law just for the sake of it. It's more reliable to just pay for the meal to know what you're getting. You don't need to be a rule-breaker all the time. You're still a badass lawbreaker, just one who's smart enough to be practical, " Miles said casually, trying to hide how he was worried about offending him. He really didn't need Scourge to be a criminal to like him as a person, and a part of him outright wished he wasn't one, but he wasn't sure if telling him that would make him think he wanted to change him or something like that, when he was desperate enough for a friend that he was willing to accept him for who he was. Scourge smiled, thinking, " Me… smart?… " basking in the compliment and just how rare it was for him to be called that. " Thanks, Miles. You should say that more often! " he replied happily.

The next time they were about to cross the street, Miles blurted out nervously, " Could I at least fly over the streets instead of running in front of cars every time I do it?!... I-I don't wanna be a nuisance telling you to stop to look left and right every time you're about to run across the road, but I-I-I just don't wanna, I don't want anything to happen. They're dangerous, Sonic! "

Scourge stared at him with a worried expression for a couple seconds, wondering if he had been hit by a car before, and finally said patiently, " Okay, fine. Fly over the roads when you get to crossing 'em, and I'll, quickly look both ways and then wait on the other side for ya. That'll happen every time we get to crossing the street from now on. Just try to fly fast at least. You're good at that already, but this is a great opportunity to get even better! " Miles sighed in relief and said to him, " Thanks. " Perhaps he didn't need to worry after all.

After that, Scourge brought Miles to the farm providing food to the city. After running up to the grazing area staying at Miles' speed so he could keep up, he jumped into the air and landed on the ground below in a fancy way to show off, wanting to stop without Miles running past him for too long. It was hardly new for him. " And here's the place that gives the city its food! Well, the food that's not imported, at least, " he said. There was a silence, and he stopped smiling upon seeing Miles' reaction. Not only did the child back away nervously from the grazing cattle and sheep, but noticing the hay outside made him get worried, and he stared at it with his pupils shrunken full of dread.

" You okay? " Scourge asked quietly as he slowly walked up to him, and carefully placed his hand on Miles' shoulder. He knew right away what he was being reminded of. For once, Miles was reliving a memory that Scourge had witnessed firsthand. " I… " Miles said quietly, vividly remembering how he had been tied to a wooden stake with straw just like that below it that was set on fire by three different people. The only reason he didn't get hurt by that experience, was that Scourge showed up in a blue tornado of wind that put out the flames to save him.

" You're my hero… " he complimented with a nervous smile, leaving Scourge stunned and struck speechless at having never been called that before. " Me, a hero? " he thought looking worried and embarrassed. " For you, yeah, " he replied with nervous body language, trying to sound as casual as possible. At the very least, he knew he was a hero to Miles, and was proud of that. But was he a heroic person in general? He cut in line and stole and fought purely out of selfishness and thrills, and got satisfaction out of annoying people rather than shame. Even if he tried to become a hero, it was probably too late for him. But he couldn't deny that being there for Miles and standing up for him was the definition of heroic. There had to be more to him than just the juvenile delinquent image he was so proud of if he was going to such efforts for a two-tailed child just to have a friend.

" I was so lucky that I screamed… " Miles whispered, and Scourge, overhearing that horrifying sentence, could only say, " Wh-What? Why? " despite agreeing with his conclusion. He went around to the front of him, putting both his hands on his shoulders looking serious. " Because I usually didn't. Because it only attracted more people to where I was, and the minute they saw what made me different, they turned on me and gave me hell… even if they were rushing to help me before! Every time I screamed for help, it only made things worse… But you weren't like that. You were different from them!... Maybe because you weren't from their island, " Miles said sadly, holding back tears, and while Scourge would never admit it, he was doing the same thing just from hearing that.

Scourge looked away from him to avoid scaring him as he said bitterly while clenching his fist, " Maybe there's just something wrong with island people in general. I-I've heard the farmer here complain about, ' city folk, ' but at least we know to keep our mouths shut. When we see something or someone different, we don't draw attention to ourselves by making a big deal out of it in public. We don't gang up on and attack people for looking different, we just go about our daily lives. City folk don't spend all that time hunting a kid down for just living on their precious island. " Miles commented with downcast eyes, " Yeah, they just stare at me silently judging. "

Briefly stroking his head to get him to look up at him, Scourge said, " That's better than before. City people like us prefer to blend in with the rest of the crowd so we can do what we want in peace. Well, not me, I love attention, but I'm talking normal people here, who aren't as cool as me. People working in the city just wanna get to work and the other spots they wanna go, they're in too much of a hurry to point and laugh, and with all the hustle and bustle, there's also lots of new stuff happening in life to distract 'em and make 'em forget. That's why they call us a fickle folk. "

Miles smiled briefly at the affection and giggled at Scourge calling himself cool finding his self-confidence inspiring and charismatic, but he returned to looking depressed rather quickly, and grumbled, " I hear what they say. I'm the talk of the town, and I've been here for over a week. I don't think that'll ever change. "

Scourge sighed sadly and said with a dismissive wand of his hand, " That's 'cause this city has nothing going on. It's a slow news day, every day. Especially recently, " resentfully thinking of his father and how he stopped the wars of the world by taking it over. From his perspective, day-to-day life didn't really improve, just stop getting worse. All his father did was cause stagnation. From his perspective, at least the chaos of the wars beforehand were interesting stories to hear about. At least technology was still progressing, aside from Dr. Kintobar's. He smiled affectionately at Miles and said, " Now come on, let's go somewhere else. " Miles nodded, and they both ran out of the farm beside each other in a blue and yellow blur.

Miles didn't seem to like the baseball park, either, as just the sight of the people playing baseball got him scared and quiet. Scourge wondered what about it was worrying him, the fear of being hit by one of the baseballs or the baseball bats the men were holding. Both looked pretty dangerous trying to think about it from Miles' perspective. " Did they have baseball parks on your island, Miles? " he asked him, watching them to the left of the bleachers.

" W-What? Uh… I think I saw one once. Is that where those weapons come from?! " Miles said nervously standing beside him, and hid behind him gasping when one of the men swung their bat. " Weapons? " Scourge whispered in horror. He looked down at the ground unhappily for a while, letting that imagery sink in, and then said quietly, " L-Let's just go. " With that, the two of them ran away from the baseball park, never intending to return. Scourge had brought Miles there and stayed in front of it for so long in the first place to try to get him to be a bit more masculine, thinking that would be good for the kid, but it soon became clear that he was too intimidated by sports, and had every reason to be.

As Scourge ran through the city with Miles easily keeping up with him at his side, turning slowly enough that he wouldn't catch him by surprise, he couldn't help but worry. While most of the parts of the city he showed Miles didn't upset him too much, aside from the usual social anxiety, the sheer amount of dread he showed at seeing the most innocuous of things was concerning. Thankful that Miles wasn't able to see his expression at the moment, Scourge thought unhappily, " Come on, Sonic, think. What part of a city would make a kid really happy?... A toy store! Of course! There's one in the mall! "

He led Miles to the mall, running through the leftmost side of its parking lot, and said with a confident but playful grin, " There's one last place I wanna take ya today. " He stopped in front of the mall's glass doors as they automatically opened in front of him, and Miles exclaimed with wide-open eyes, " Cool! They opened by themselves! When you said you belonged to a rich and powerful family, you weren't kidding! " smiling in amazement at the sight. Scourge looked at him with an amused expression and a cocked eyebrow, and decided to let him believe that until he figured it out for himself. " Why ruin his fun? " he thought, as Miles followed him into the first ever mall he had ever seen.

They made a quick run through of the place, with Scourge very briefly showing him every store just for the sake of it, and then finally, Scourge said, " I've saved the best for last! " and led him into the toy store with a smile. " You can have whatever you want here, ' little bro! ' " Scourge said walking ahead of Miles in one of the toy aisles, and chuckled thinking to himself, " I wonder if this is like letting a bull loose in a china store? Or a kid loose in a candy store? Though Miles never liked candy… "

Unfortunately, the eerie lack of footsteps behind him took him out of his high spirits, and he nervously turned around to see a familiar haunted look on Miles' face. Even the bright and colorful-looking toys, things that seemed completely harmless, were filling him with dread. Scourge thought sadly, " I'm starting to think there's something seriously wrong with him… " shocked at the idea that he could be afraid of even that. He slowly approached him and said quietly, " Miles? " hoping he wouldn't startle him and get him running away in a panic.

" Uh… " Miles forced himself to say, still lost in a feeling of dread and fear that he couldn't quite explain. " What's the problem? " Scourge asked, trying to very carefully word his question to avoid sounding judgmental or dismissive. He knew very well how overly sensitive Miles could be, to the point where occasionally, it got annoying. " I don't, know… I don't… remember… " Miles whispered staring at the toys, and Scourge looked even more worried, and was thankful that no one happened to be there to witness it.

Trying to give him the benefit of the doubt, he asked quietly, " Do you think anyone, hurt you with these things? " Miles looked around the aisle, his eyes darting back and forth as he took the sight of it in, and said quietly, " Probably when I was too young to remember it. I can't imagine the people at the orphanage let me play with any toys, so maybe… I, I just… Do you really think I should have these? "

There was a silence, and Miles tried to keep tears from coming out of his eyes, wanting to avoid embarrassing himself or his new friend. All Scourge could say was, " Miles… " He couldn't believe it. After all of those years of being treated like someone whose life wasn't valuable, who didn't deserve anything that would make him happy, could a part of Miles have been brainwashed into agreeing with it? How could he get his confidence up if he was so full of insecurity and shame that were deeply ingrained in him no matter what he'd do?

" Of course you should. You're clever, and devoted, and loyal, and talented… You're the best person I've ever met. Don't listen to all the lies that you've been told, " he comforted Miles, and put his arms around him in a hug, which the kid returned with a small smile. A tear still managed to escape his eye, but he wiped it away, and giggled nervously.

After the hug was over, Scourge said trying to act as cheerful and eager as usual, " Let's just take a quick run through all the aisles to see if there's anything you like, " and Miles nodded, and ran after him obediently.

They never did find anything Miles was willing to ask for. While a few of the toys looked tempting, specifically the handheld gaming devices, there was a part of him that was terrified of asking for them or even so much as touching them, as if he'd only receive a smack and a scolding for his efforts. He felt like he shouldn't have any of them, that it was wrong, and the most frustrating thing of all was that he knew how irrational he was being and couldn't stop feeling that way. Leaving the mall, the only thing Miles liked about the experience in the end was that he could hear music playing in it, and even then, it was too hard to hear it clearly over the sound of the wind rushing past him and Scourge as they ran through the mall.


	2. The First Day Out in the City

The next day, Scourge was just about to leave the house with Miles when one of the maids said to him, " Wait! Your father told me to give you a message. " Scourge shrugged and said spitefully, " Why should I care? He wants me to hear something, he can say it himself, " thinking afterwards, " When he's actually here. " Miles, being the more polite one, asked, " What is it? " out of curiosity, which Scourge was a bit annoyed by. He only kept it subtle to humor him.

" They've started giving out the flu vaccine now, and your father thinks that while you get yours, you should ask about giving one to Miles if he hasn't had it already. We don't want him getting sick in this house, " the maid explained. The mere mention of it made Miles look terrified. " Ugh, can't argue with that, I guess. Okay, Miles, it's time to see my doctor. If you're gonna be a part of this family, you might as well start going to him, " Scourge said reluctantly.

Miles exclaimed in fear, " What?! " and turned to him looking hurt. Caught off guard by it, Scourge stammered before saying, " What's wrong?! You know it's to help you, right? Do you know what a vaccine is? " There was a silence before Miles nodded unhappily.

Scourge wished that the maid wasn't right there watching him during all the commotion, but was fortunately too stubborn to let that prevent him from being comforting. " Come on, Miles, it's just a really brief prick on the arm that'll keep you from getting too sick. I don't blame ya for being worried, a lot of people don't like needles, not just you. But you're a smart kid, right? " Scourge said to him quietly with his arm around him in a sideways hug. At the end, he threw his compliment back at him, calling him smart when Miles gave him the same compliment. Not only did he do it to genuinely compliment him, but he was hoping this would manipulate him into proving him right about it by doing exactly what he wanted.

" Yeah, " Miles admitted with downcast eyes. " So do the smart thing and get the needle, " Scourge said with a satisfied smirk that Miles couldn't see at the moment. " Okay, Sonic, but you'll have to hold me still, " Miles whispered ashamed of himself. Scourge nodded in response, and with that, they left for the hospital, Scourge of course leading the way.

It felt strange, actually stepping foot inside of a hospital without being kicked out of it for his second tail. Miles had received many injuries in his young life, but the one time he tried to go to the hospital for them, he was told to leave by everyone in the room. It was hard to believe that things had changed so much that suddenly he was allowed to even so much as walk inside of a hospital, let alone take advantage of its services. He tried to ignore all of the strangers he passed by as he followed Scourge through the hospital. At one point, they entered an elevator, something Miles had never experienced before, and he found it strange feeling the floor rising up below him, though he was so used to quickly reaching high altitudes from flying that he didn't mind too much. Things were relatively calm for him, all things considered, until he finally walked into the room where the doctor was.

Fortunately for Miles, the doctor didn't start out with trying to give them needles. Instead, he asked in curiosity, " Oh, is this a new patient? " Miles looked away with his eyes squeezed shut sitting on the wide red chair beside Scourge, immediately revealing his social anxiety to him. Scourge explained looking serious, " His name is Miles. M-Miles Prower. "

The doctor raised his eyebrows a bit and joked lightheartedly, " You mean like, miles per hour? I can see how you took a liking to him! " He wasn't intending to make Miles uncomfortable, but it was clearly not a joke he was appreciating. " That's a new one, " Miles thought. He had almost never been made fun of for the pun on his name before. He supposed the fact that he pointed that out and not his second tail was reassuring, except he might have just been not mentioned his prejudice to keep from angering Scourge for all he knew.

" He's not just my friend, I adopted him! Found him in the woods on an island last week and took him under my wing. He's part of my family now! " Scourge said, trying to reassure Miles by acting cheerful instead of annoyed from the doctor's joke. " Really? You went through the legal process and everything? " the doctor responded. " Screw that! Point is, he lives with me now, and he's like a brother to me. I don't need any fancy papers or anything to make that true. So why don't you give him a check-up first, see if he's alright? " Scourge replied, getting impatient.

The doctor said, " Alright. I'm Dr. Hofstater. It's nice to meet you, " and Miles looked at him in a mixture of confusion, anxiety and suspicion. He seemed to be rather friendly for a stranger. He was a Moebian of the duck race with glasses and a white coat. Could he not see that he was a mutant? " Um, ditto, " he mumbled quietly with his head hung low, and Scourge rolled his eyes.

The doctor proceeded to do the usual check-up routine on him, including the typical reflex test tapping on his knee lightly, checking his temperature by putting a gray thermometer in his ear, and listening to his heartbeat with a stethoscope, all the while with Scourge trying to quietly reassure him through his nervousness and discomfort. " How is he, doc? " Scourge asked casually. " His temperature's fine, but his reflexes are a bit hyperactive as you could see, and his heartbeat's faster than it should be, " the doctor explained. " T-That's just because he's nervous. He's never even seen a doctor before, " Scourge explained, hoping that was the only explanation and his only friend didn't have any kind of heart trouble. " Never? " the doctor said in surprise, concerned about just what kind of life that orphan had in the woods.

" Anyhoo, all that's left is to test your eyesight. It's quick, don't worry about it. Stand on the other side of the room and read out the letters on that chart over there, " the doctor continued quickly. Looking unhappy, embarrassed and confused, Miles took a few seconds before asking him quietly, " How? " There was a silence as they both looked at him in confusion. " How do I, pronounce them? They're not even words, they're just one letter each. How can I possibly know how to pronounce them? " Miles said in confusion, getting the bad feeling that this was one of those things he missed out on learning about that everyone else knew by heart. " Some genius I am… " he thought, for what was far from the first time.

Scourge thought, " He hasn't heard the alphabet? " dumbfounded by what he just learned, and briefly imagined himself awkwardly trying to teach him the alphabet when he would be too embarrassed to sing the alphabet song in front of him. Could he bring him to the window of a kindergarten very briefly just so he could hear it and then leave? Would that be too much for him? Knowing what his ignorance implied and not wanting to be impolite, the doctor instead humored him by saying, " Just say the letters how you think they should logically sound, then. It's to test your vision to see if you're near-sighted. "

Miles sighed unhappily, prepared himself for a long period of embarrassment and reluctantly did what he was urged to do. He soon revealed that, while he could at least read in general, it didn't take long for him to start squinting and finding the letters too blurry to continue. By that point, the doctor decided, " Alright, you're done, then. " Scourge asked in concern, " So does he need glasses? " and got the reply, " Not quite, but his vision is below average. Just not terribly so. He might need some when he's older, though, if it keeps getting worse. "

Scourge asked, " But why? " and started to get worried again as Miles explained, " I've, had a lot of dirt kicked in my eyes and stuff… and sand, and, one time something nasty called, ' pebber spray. ' D-Do you think that might be it? " The doctor had to hold back gasping sharply at hearing that, and so did Scourge, with both of them knowing exactly what he meant to say. After a few seconds, the doctor said in shock, " Pepper spray?... I, suppose so, but again, your vision isn't that terrible. I-It's perfectly servicable. "

" What kind of monsters would do that to a little kid? " Scourge growled under his breath, head down and fist clenched in vengeance, and to his embarrassment, his family doctor turned to face him hearing him show that compassion. Miles was caught between appreciating how he cared about him and being annoyed that he was once again being referred to as a label, only this time it was " little kid " instead of " freak. " Sometimes he worried that it would never end. " I'm not that little, " he muttered defensively with his arms crossed, and while he tried to look annoyed, Scourge and the doctor only saw a pout, which made them smile at how cute he could look. Then the smiles stopped as they realized just how heartless his bullies must have been to hurt someone so young and innocent.

Unfortunately for Miles, just then a nurse walked into the room carrying the next batch of flu vaccines, and he gasped in fear just from seeing them. Remembering what he said, Scourge told him, " Miles, relax! " and let him hug him tightly, returning the hug to hold him still as the nurse gave him the needle quickly. The familiar sensation of a needle pricking into his skin made him briefly yelp, and he started breathing quicker with his pupils shrunken trembling, close enough to Scourge that he could feel his heart beating faster in response. He didn't even notice that Scourge was being given a vaccine as well.

" No, no, no! I don't wanna die! " Miles exclaimed crying, frightened beyond reason as his mind flooded him with the memory of being pinned down by a gang member in the woods and having tranquilizer put in him. He was very lucky he was able to throw him off him with his tails, moving them almost as fast as the speed of sound throwing him into the tree ahead of him, and then rolled over, pushed himself back to his feet, and spun his tails behind him to get sent away in a blast of wind before he could finish him off. But all of the extra exertion only further tired him out, and the increased heart rate he had only spread the tranquilizer faster, and as a red haze blocked his vision, he eventually tripped and started tumbling down a rocky cliff, passing out before he reached the end of it. When he woke up, he was being held captive in a basement washroom, and while all of his injuries had been treated correctly, he would not be treated with kindness.

" Miles, it's okay! It's to prevent you from getting sick, not cause it! What the hell happened to you?... " Scourge tried to reassure him in vain. The kid was hysterical, hugging him for dear life as his only tether to reality, and even then, he was only vaguely aware of him. The doctor told Scourge, " Bring him to the bed, " and with that, he was gently carried to the hospital bed across the room and laid down in it as he fainted from fear, still clutching his chest, with Scourge having no choice but to continue holding him as the nurse awkwardly left the room. Needless to say, he shot the doctor a glare silently warning him to not let word get out about what a soft side he had.

Getting the message, the doctor cleared his throat nervously, before cautiously asking, " Do you think he might have experienced some, trauma in the past? " " Ya think?! " Scourge said in annoyance, before briefly stroking Miles' head to reassure him. The doctor wanted him to get checked for post-traumatic stress disorder, but Scourge didn't look like he would be very willing to cooperate. He might be offended at the very idea, and accuse him of insulting Miles. Even trying to be subtle about it by saying he should get an MRI might just be too uncomfortable for the both of them. He supposed he would have to wait until the off chance Miles got a head injury and he had an excuse.

They both waited for him to wake up, with the doctor being uncomfortable with the wait looking away from them while Scourge tried to take a short nap with Miles, and he would've appreciated holding him a lot more if the doctor would have only left. Miles, however, felt content and at peace as soon as he regained awareness and realized that the person who cared about him the most was holding him in his arms, and he even pretended to still be asleep for a little while to keep experiencing it. Unfortunately for him, Scourge soon noticed the difference in how he was breathing and let go of him, said quietly, " You awake? Come on, let's go, then, " and they were walking out of the room before he knew it.

With the doctor no longer in earshot, Scourge said quietly, " So, Miles, uh… What was that about? " Feeling hurt, Miles asked with his ears drooping a bit, " What? " thinking that he knew about how he was trying to get him to hold him for as long as he could get away with. Scourge, not exactly the most tactful speaker, said unhappily, " You don't remember? The nurse gave you that anti-flu thing, and you freaked out! " Miles instinctively gasped at hearing one of the final words of his sentence.

" What? " Scourge asked, realizing too late that he hadn't chosen his words carefully enough. He stammered afterwards upon noticing his tactless mistake. " I-It's just a figure of speech, Miles, I didn't mean anything by it. I meant that you got all scared, " he quietly clarified to him, and Miles quickly wiped away his tears, hoping it wouldn't be obvious to anyone seeing him later that he had been crying, as silently as he could manage to. " I-I don't wanna talk about it… " he said sadly with his voice cracking, and Scourge soon decided that for now at least, he knew enough. " Why don't I carry ya home, buddy? Run ya there faster, " Scourge said to him, and Miles nodded with a smile.

Scourge was worried about him for the entire time that he was running home, and between all the different places in the city that Miles had been scared at seeing and the outright panic attack that the vaccine had given him, he was determined to do something to make it up to him, because his first two days experiencing the city only made him upset. Remembering what he had said he'd do for him on the first day of their friendship, Scourge looked in the phone book for music teachers that would teach private lessons, and managed to find Miles a violin teacher.

Calling the number, feeling awkward about what he was about to do, he tried to speak casually as he said, " Yeah, I'm lookin' for someone to teach my lil' bro Miles how to play the violin. You interested?... The name's Sonic, Sonic the Hedgehog. I'm sure ya already know my reputation by this point, and how rich my old man is. Point is, my new partner in crime wants to learn music, and if you're willing to be polite to him, and teach him what he wants, I'll pay you handsomely. " He smirked, planning on intimidating the music teacher into working for free. " Then it's a deal! You'll show up at my mansion for a half an hour every Monday and Wednesday at 4:00 PM, and teach Miles what ya know for as long as he wants. Don't underestimate him 'cause he's a 5-year-old kid. He's way smarter than he looks. You might have a prodigy on your hands, " he said into the phone, and told the teacher where exactly he lived.

Being able to find one would cause him to use the same method months later to find a piano teacher for Miles after he was done with his violin lessons. The two music teachers, one after the other, were polite and intelligent people who were good at their jobs, and as Miles insisted on to repay them for their help, they would indeed be paid, rather than only having to do it to avoid injury like Scourge wanted.

Scourge threateningly warned both music teachers against ever hurting Miles or his feelings too much, saying to the violin teacher on his first day as he brought him to Miles' room, " Do a good job, and be polite to him! I swear, if you so much as slap his wrist, there'll be hell to pay! So be nice to him! Capiche? " The teacher, a tall lynx, nervously nodded as he walked up the stairs with him.

Scourge knocked on the door of the guest room and said, " Hey, Miles! I got a surprise for ya! " in a friendly tone, before whispering to the teacher, " Wait here, " going into the room and saying to Miles happily, " I got ya someone to teach ya the violin, just like I promised! " walking up to his bed. Surprised, Miles turned off his TV with the remote control, stood up from the bed nervously, and Scourge reassured him whispering, " Don't worry, he won't hurt ya. You've got nothing to worry about. "

Miles smiled nervously at the teacher as Scourge left the room, awkwardly trying to hide his second tail behind his first after the teacher noticed it. " Alright, then, I'll be your new teacher, Mr. Ivanstrom. I've heard you have a lot of potential, " the male lynx started saying awkwardly, noticing Miles' social anxiety and feeling pressured to not upset him. The last thing he wanted was to get on Scourge's bad side. " Let's start with the basics. Hold this bow and move it briefly along the parts of the strings I'll point out and I'll tell you what the name of each note is. " Miles said in confusion, " Bow? I thought that was a, projectile shooting weapon. "

Mr. Ivanstrom, wondering if this response was due to his young age and lack of experience with the world, simply stayed polite and explained, " That's a different type of bow. This is what people use to play stringed instruments like the violin. " Miles replied looking a bit embarrassed with his ears down, " Oh, okay, " and followed his instructions, playing each note on the violin one at a time with the teacher listing the letter of the alphabet they were associated with and their pitch relating to each other. This didn't exactly teach Miles the alphabet, as he still didn't know the order all the letters were in, and he instead simply associated the letter names he was being told of with the notes he was hearing.

When all that was done, he was told, " Well done. What I just told you was basically the scale of pitch. An easy way to remember the order of the letters is to remember the sentence, ' Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge. ' You take the first letter of each word in the sentence to get ' E, G, B, D and F, ' " and briefly explained which letter was the lowest note. " W-What's fudge? " Miles asked, embarrassed again of his ignorance. The teacher was stunned at the question, before answering, " I-It's chocolate, basically. You should ask Sonic to let you try it some time, it's really tasty, " before continuing on with the lesson.

" Now obviously, having several notes play close to each other produces a melody you can hear, and there are many different melodies in the world that join into groups called songs. Technically, the word song only refers to music with lyrics in it, with actual words, but the definition can be used in a broader sense as well because ' this music piece ' takes a bit too long to say at times. Why don't you try playing this small song? " Mr. Ivanstrom said, pulling out of his black briefcase some sheet music, consisting of seven notes.

After studying it for a few seconds after which the teacher moved it out of his sight, Miles ended up playing the song perfectly on the first try. Needless to say, the teacher was impressed. He had been expecting Miles to stumble and play the wrong notes, but he memorized all seven notes and played them.

" Splendid! You did it perfectly! How'd you remember so many notes at once for your first ever melody? " he asked, unable to hide his excitement for the unusual-looking child's talent. " Well, I remembered what each, letter, sounded like, and that created the melody I needed in my head, and I just played along with that, " Miles explained nonchalantly, confused that it was even considered a big deal.

The teacher went on to teach him some other slightly longer melodies, including ones traditionally taught by music teachers like " Bah Bah Black Sheep, " and other nursery songs, which Miles had no problem with because he had no way of knowing the context those kids' songs were used in. Sure enough, Miles showed a knack for memorizing the notes of those songs, too. He often played music after hearing it being played by his teacher, and was always able to play it back to him.

He didn't even see anything unusual about it. He heard a note, and it always stuck in his head what it sounded like, how much lower and higher in pitch it was in relation to the other notes, and most importantly where on the violin it was. He was taught about every single note that the violin could play, every single pitch. By the end of the lesson, the teacher, while not even close to done teaching him all of the songs he had planned, was already considering teaching him more about music itself, like the terminology associated with it such as tempo and rhythm.

Miles himself was nervous but polite to each of the teachers, appreciating how they weren't being abusive to him, and despite not liking his second tail, his teachers were nevertheless very impressed with his natural skill and quick learning. Scourge was worried upon the teacher exiting Miles' room for the first time, but cheered up upon seeing the smile on Miles' face and hearing from him in an excited tone, " I've learned so much! This is really cool. Thanks, Sonic! Make sure to pay him a lot, alright?! He's earned it! " revealing to Scourge's unenthusiasm that he had to pay him for his work after all. As Scourge remembered where exactly the money in the mansion was kept, Miles whispered, " He wasn't mean to me once! " to his relief, and then added,

" By the way, we should try some chocolate ' fudge ' some time. Apparently it's really tasty! " As Scourge walked down the hallway leading to the stairs with him, he asked Miles with a smile, " It sure is! How'd you know? " and Miles told him about the pitch scale sentence he was told to remember. " Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge! " Miles said, with a childlike enthusiasm for the topic he was learning about that gave him a smile brighter than it had been in days. He may not have had a fun day before that point, being terrified by a simple vaccine, but Scourge knew now that he had made up for it.

He politely stayed quiet and let Miles ramble on and on about what he had learned as he tried to explain where on the violin each note was without having the violin with him, before being interrupted playfully, " Alright, Mozart, settle down. Music is your passion, not mine, so I doubt I'll remember all that. I'm just glad you're having fun. " Unhappy at being interrupted and potentially being insulted, as well as the revelation that he wouldn't be able to share his new knowledge with his friend, Miles replied, " Mozart? " in confusion, trying to hide how upset he really was.

" Oh, right. It's the name of some famous music-making guy. Lived hundreds of years ago and was great at the piano, so he was pretty popular and well-known, especially back in his time. 'Course, classical music isn't really the big thing anymore. No one's gonna get super famous and praised at being great at it now, but then again, that's a good thing for you, I can't imagine you'd like the attention. " Scourge explained.

After a brief silence, Miles nodded, and admitted, " Yeah. I don't know if I'd be willing to play music in front of anyone if I didn't have to, " and whispered to him to avoid having the teacher overhear, " I don't like the idea that I'm being judged, that there's a lot of pressure on me to get everything right. I still can't believe I managed to do that well in front of him, considering that. "

The teacher walked with Scourge down the stairs as Miles reluctantly followed them to the front door, telling Scourge, " You were completely right! He's able to memorize notes and where they are on the violin and play melodies back to me, and without making any mistakes! I'm already considering giving him more advanced teaching! At that age, he's a musical prodigy! He has a lot of potential. "

Unfortunately, Scourge didn't truly appreciate that potential. Miles' interest in music always just looked like some random hobby to Scourge, who didn't see how it benefited him personally, particularly considering that Miles was too shy to play that music in front of him anyways. He was proud of Miles, but didn't see how it mattered.

Miles would pick up on Scourge's cheerfully dismissive, " it's just a hobby, " attitude towards his interest in music, even if Scourge never actually said it to his face, and this would plant the seeds for a long-standing insecurity about whether his playing music was actually worth anything to begin with. Unlike Tails, whose passion would lead him to building inventions that his friends would take advantage of, Miles' passion for music didn't look like anything useful, just something he did because he liked music, and enjoyed expressing his feelings through it.

Having a music teacher for Miles allowed Scourge to not have to spend every single second of the day with a little kid around him, when he was trying to build a feared reputation in the city by himself. It was already getting out that he had a soft side thanks to Miles, and despite being lonely, the kid's clinginess was still a bit overwhelming for him. Unfortunately, the lessons only lasted a half an hour, and took place close to supper, when he was usually heading home anyways, so ultimately, it didn't give him any time to break the law by himself.

Instead, he just ended up heading home with him a half an hour early from then on, watching TV while leaving Miles alone with a fortunately polite music teacher. Since Miles' room had fairly thick walls, like the rest of the well-built mansion, Scourge couldn't even hear the music he was playing to listen to his progress.


	3. The Second and Third Day Out in the City

The third day that Scourge was giving Miles a tour of his city was met with some success for the most part, but there were still a few places that the kid was uneasy about. The day started out strong, though, with Scourge taking him to the book store, where there were lots of educational books, including ones on the weather and music, the topics Miles was most interested in. After looking around the store, Miles said in amazement,

" There's so many books here I'd love to read! But I can't just ask for all of them at once. There's only so much we can carry home, and I don't wanna make you spend too much money all in one day… " That last sentence made it clear that he wanted him to pay for the books, and that he wanted the two of them to be able to revisit that place a lot because of all the books he wanted to read. As a result, Scourge decided that he would need to use his stolen money to pay for the books rather than just taking them like he planned. He would later have to make this decision with the very next place they would visit.

When they visited the CD store afterwards, he soon learned that it might be a good place to go looking for Christmas gifts for the fox, considering how much he took a liking to what it was offering. " Here's the CD store! " Scourge said to him. " What's a CD? " Miles asked him, and felt a little embarrassed at seeing the store owner out of the corner of his eye give him a funny look. " It's something you put in a CD player to hear music! " Scourge answered with a knowing smile, and just like he expected, Miles was amazed as soon as it dawned on him just how much music could be listened to in that one store.

" Wow… There's so many of them! Would I ever be able to have time to listen to them all? " Miles said happily. " Why not when you're having your tea? I'll find ya a CD player and then you'll be able to hear all the music ya want! What 'dya like? " Scourge said with a confident smile, proud of himself for knowing him so well and being so excellent at making him happy.

Looking confused, Miles said, " Uh, I dunno. Music with emotions I can relate to? With lots of passion, something that's not boring. I-I barely ever got to hear music, and when I did, it's not like there was anyone there telling me what type of music it was… " Scourge said, " Hmm… Got it, " with an understanding smile and a wink, easily figuring out the type of rock music he would like the most.

When they were heading to the general store, Miles cheerfully decided to fly to take a shortcut to the store and jokingly switch things up by making it so he'd be the one holding the door open for once. Unfortunately, pushing on the door didn't cause it to open. Getting frustrated and with increasing desperation, he tried pushing on it as hard as he could, and after a couple seconds of trying to open the door before someone could run up to him, he started to panic, his heart beating faster as the familiar feeling of failing to open a door led to another painful memory.

" No, no, please! Open! Please! " he started saying quietly, trembling, and when he heard wind roaring behind him and a blue and black blur run up to beside him, he jumped and yelped, " NO! " startled and turned around terrified, backing up against the door ready to make an escape.

" Miles? Relax! " Scourge said with his previous playful joy turning into concern. A few seconds passed as Miles recognized who he was and calmed himself down, sighing at the end in relief as his friend's familiar scent, voice, body shape and blue color made him snap out of his panic. " What's wrong? " Scourge asked with concern, narrowly stopping himself from adding now to the end of the sentence and coming off as unsympathetic to his fear out of exasperation with it. Sometimes he hated having to regularly rethink over sentences just for him, and wished he could just speak his mind without thinking more often.

" I can't open the door, " Miles admitted with downcast eyes feeling pathetic, ashamed at realizing upon saying the words how he panicked over something that was no big deal at all. He continued, " I just wanted to switch things up, hold it open for you for once, as a joke, but it didn't open. I wanted it to open… and you were running up to me so fast… "

Scourge looked at him with sympathy briefly, wondering how many times Miles had to deal with being unable to open a door and being cornered by bullies because of it. Trying to reassure him, Scourge right away smiled and said, " It's a pull door, " and pulled it open with a grin. Miles giggled nervously scratching the back of his own neck, and said, " Oh, okay. I wish it said that on the door. " As he walked into the store alongside him, Scourge replied cheerfully, " Good point, that would be more convenient, " and they started walking down the aisle of the general store to the left of them.

Pretty soon, Scourge and Miles were running through the store, and at some point, they stopped at a part of it that Miles found unusually cold. Scourge exclaimed happily, " The dessert aisle! There's some ice cream here! " and after taking a chocolate ice cream container out of the refridgeration area, he noticed Miles unhappily zipping up his leather jacket. " It's too cold in here, " Miles complained, looking sad and melancholic. Scourge looked at him in sympathy for a little bit, and thought back to the day he had met Miles, when he was telling him at his ship's restaurant how hard it had been for him to survive the winter.

Ruffling his hair, he reassured him, " It's to keep the ice cream cold, so it won't get all melty. We won't be here long, " and the two of them ran out of the cold part of the store immediately. Eventually, they left the store entirely, with Scourge not even paying for the ice cream. As Miles ran alongside him, he was about to point that out in confusion, only for it to dawn on him that he did it on purpose and think, " Oh, right. It's just some general store. He probably doesn't care too much about whether they want him in there, " and shrug it off.

He had gotten so used to having to take his food from people's fridges that Scourge stealing food from a small-time general store didn't even faze him. He didn't understand why it was even wrong, and Scourge was in no hurry to tell him. All he did was say, " Jackpot! " upon getting the ice cream, and bring it home in a brief trip as Miles wondered what that word even meant, and refrained from asking and looking like an idiot.

Soon, they returned to the city, and one of the places Scourge brought Miles to get him familiar with it was the beach. They were standing on a hill overlooking it from above, out of sight of everyone there. " Pretty cool, huh? It's one of the most popular beaches in the state! " Scourge said with a smile. He looked at a squirrel-race Moebian girl his age in a bikini, and he added, " Lots of hot chicks, too! " Miles looked at him in confusion after looking around the beach again, and said, " Chicks? " not understanding what he meant.

" You know, the girls! " Scourge said cheerfully ruffling his hair at his cute naivety. " Uh, oh, okay. But if they're hot, why don't they just go inside where there's air conditioning? Is the beach really that fun that people will overheat themselves for it? Doesn't seem like there's much to do in it, there's just sand everywhere, " Miles replied, still confused.

Scourge was surprised for a second before saying in amusement, " Hot as in, ' good-looking, ' Tails little buddy. Just look at 'em! " and wolf-whistled before putting one arm around Miles' back moving his other arm in front of him from left to right, encouraging him to take in the sights. Instead of appreciating it, though, Miles looked sad, and soon said with a depressed tone and downcast eyes, " Good-looking?... So you find that pretty important after all, huh… "

Confused, and a bit annoyed, Scourge sighed in annoyance at him spoiling his fun and said to him mildly annoyed at first, " What's the big deal? I just appreciate how they look nice. I-I mean they work hard on looking good, some of them! G-Gotta appreciate the effort! What's to be sad about? " being nervous trying to humor him at the end. There was a brief silence before Miles clarified melancholically,

" I just don't see how that matters… but I guess I shouldn't be too surprised. Everyone only cares about looks. Why would you be the exception? I-I bet if any of these girls didn't fit society's arbitrary standards on what a normal person should look like, you'd hate her, too… " His voice cracked at the end, and as he continued through his final sentence, his two tails moved in front of him, and he held them in his hands tightly, staring at them with a mixture of heartwrenching sadness and a scrutinizing glare. " Oh, man… " Scourge thought sadly, realizing just how deep that issue went with the child.

Worrying that it could cause problems for their friendship if Miles started thinking about him like that and comparing him to bullies, Scourge placed his hand on Miles' shoulder and reassured him, " It isn't like that. It's okay. C-Come on, so what if you have one more tail? I think it's cool! Hell, I'm gonna go as far to say that I think every fox should have an extra tail! " Surprised, Miles looked at him letting go of his tails and letting them return to being behind him, and said to him, " Really?!... It would've been nice… not being the odd one out… " looking depressed at the end, but not nearly as much as before.

" You can swim, right? " Scourge asked to distract him from his previous train of thought, remmebering how Miles had fallen into the ocean in front of him on their first meeting and was lucky he got thrown back on shore by the waves. The last thing he wanted was his only friend drowning on him. It was bad enough the previous two days out in the city were a disaster.

" Yeah, I taught myself how. Had to observe other people do it from afar, but when I figured it out from practice in a shallow pond in the woods, it saved my life a lot. Can't fly under the water, though, the water's weight slows my tails down too much, " Miles explained, feeling embarrassed and self-conscious of how much unnecessary information he gave him afterwards. He thought, " I talk too much… "

Scourge said in his usual carefree way, " Well, why don't 'cha try swimming here? It's what a beach is for, after all! " and smiled confidently, until he realized that Miles wasn't very happy at seeing all of the different people that were on the beach and in its water. " Hold on, kiddo, " he said comfortingly patting his shoulder.

He quickly ran in a circle around the beach in a blue and black blur, using his super speed to kick around the sand everywhere and create a miniature sand tornado scaring everyone on the beach away. Seeing that there were still people in the water, he shouted, " Shark! " and since a shark movie had been released recently, they were on edge about it enough to immediately assume he was telling the truth and get out of the water, leaving the beach in a panic.

The lifeguard soon went up to him, saying angrily, " Hey, what do you think you're doing? " Scourge smirked and created a sand tornado from running around the large muscular walrus with shades, completely unintimidated by him, and finished it off by homing-attacking him multiple times in a row. " Okay, okay, stop! What do you want?! " he replied in a panic, and Scourge demanded standing on top of his chest,

" To have this beach all to myself, me and Miles! " which cued Miles to reluctantly run up to him after some hesitation and force a menacing look on his face to hide his fear. The lifeguard groaned and reluctantly nodded as he sat up, and Scourge said encouragingly to his brother, " Come on, Miles, the water's great! "

Miles took off his leather jacket and got into the water at first, but seeing Scourge there near him made him really nervous, and he was promptly ashamed of once again being triggered by something that seemed on the surface to be very minor. Noticing Miles looking away from him nervously as he swam at the water's surface near the beach, Scourge asked, " What's the matter, Miles? Do you not like water? You're swimming great! "

Miles knew it was completely irrational to worry that Scourge would ever even consider trying to push him under the water and hold him under there, when he wasn't like the bullies he had to deal with on his island, but there was still that fear, that overwhelming anxiety that automatically showed up every time he could face that risk. He still couldn't stop imagining the worst case scenario, and repeatedly considering the paranoid idea that Scourge might do that on a whim just for fun, just to see what it was like and give him a scare.

" I-I can swim just fine… but I don't like it, " Miles finally admitted, trying to hide how afraid he was just from having someone near him in the water at all. He didn't think him being on the other side of the beach would make it any better, and in fact, the loneliness would make it even worse. The whole appeal of being out of the house was spending time with his only friend, and he wouldn't feel like he was if Scourge wasn't close to him, able to protect him quickly in an emergency.

Scourge was a bit frustrated that he had wasted his time scaring everyone off the beach, and failed at giving him a fun place to hang out outside of the house, but tried to hide his annoyance for Miles' sake and humored him. " Okay, alright, we'll leave. I was getting bored of this place anyways, " he said, and Miles immediately swam out of the water and started rushing up the beach without looking where he was going.

This caused him to suddenly fall forwards onto the sand with a yelp, having tripped on something left behind by the people Scourge scared away. Panicked, he exclaimed, " NO! " and struggled to get up as fast as possible from the strangely bumpy sand below him, thrashing his tails around wildly behind him as if to try and defend himself in his vulnerable state.

" Miles, relax! " Scourge said to him once again at seeing him panic, and thought as he approached him from the front, " Damn it, that's gonna become my catch-phrase at this rate… " Hearing his actual name stunned Miles for a moment, and he slowly snapped out of his instinctive panic at seeing the familiar sight of a blue hedgehog go up to him.

" Huh? W-What'd I trip on?! " Miles asked in a bit of a daze, regaining his focus on the present. Wondering just what kind of memory had been triggered in him and soon deciding that he didn't need to know, Scourge forced a smile and reassured him, " A sand castle, that's all. Luckily there was no one around to see this, " promptly remembered that the lifeguard was watching them the whole time, and was thankful that Miles didn't remember that and correct him.

" Need a hand? " he said to him helpfully having his hand outstretched, still with a smile that masked concern, and Miles hesitated instinctively for a moment before happily taking his hand and allowing him to help him back to his feet. Scourge looked over at the lifeguard on his tall chair watching the commotion and shot him an annoyed glare, hoping in vain that it would warn him not to tell other people about his soft side. He wondered just how many people were talking about how they saw him interact with the two-tailed little kid and spreading rumors chronicling all of Miles' freak-outs, characterizing Scourge as a softie at heart, and his best friend Miles as a coward.

" Well, these things seem annoying, " Miles complained bitterly about the sand castle, trying to blame it for his recent panic attack and feel a bit better about himself. He went to standing at his side, looking over the sand castle with irritation.

Scourge started out encouraging him, " They can be fun to build, " only to realize that this was the perfect opportunity to encourage him to be more aggressive, and continued as if he meant to all along, " but they're even more fun to destroy! " Miles shielded his eyes instinctively as Scourge kicked the side of the sand castle once, not wanting to get sand in his eyes and embarrass himself with being triggered yet again in front of him. He wondered just how weak Scourge thought he was.

" Come on, Miles, get your revenge! Kick it down! " Scourge happily encouraged him, snapping him out of his insecure train of thought. " Oh, right, " he said, and closed his eyes before furiously kicking the sand castle as much and as hard as he could until nothing remained of it, letting out stress and expressing anger that he usually wasn't able to at all. At the end of it, he sighed a bit exhausted, panting for a brief few seconds at how much energy he exerted taking his anger out on a mere sand castle. A part of him felt pathetic for wanting to do that. He wished there were more worthy targets for him.

" Felt good, didn't it? " Scourge encouraged with a hand on his shoudler, and Miles nodded in response. " Yeah, it was… good to be able to express my irritation with an action for once… felt less, well, powerless… " he admitted quietly in between breaths, a little ashamed and depressed. Soon, his eyes looked down at the front of his body, and he started dusting himself off depressed at how he was covered with sand. " Great, " Miles muttered, and grumbled under his breath, " it's like I'm a dirty homeless kid all over again, " not understanding that Scourge could hear him and looked concerned once again.

" You should have a bath when you get home. Why don't 'cha wash up for a second in the ocean there and do the rest later? " Scourge advised him quietly, being a responsible older brother to him. Miles nodded, despite the fact that washing the dirt or sand stains out of his fur in an ocean instead of a bath or shower reminded him even more of when he was homeless. Scourge stared at the sight with a sad look on his face, thinking, " Oh, Miles… What am I gonna do with you? " hoping that he wouldn't always be like that.

When Miles finished getting most of the sand out of his fur, he put his leather jacket back on, thankful that it hadn't blown away in the wind or something, and followed Scourge as he showed him around the rest of the city. For the most part, it went by fine, with Scourge casually explaining what the stores and whatnot were pointing them out to Miles and then running to the next area ahead, but after an hour, he ran into one of the last few areas in the city that Miles didn't like. " And there's the orphanage… " Scourge said casually at first, only to slow down speaking and get uncomfortable while saying the final word, remembering something he learned about Miles.

The kid had mentioned to him earlier that his orphanage burned down, and sure enough, looking at the one in front of him wasn't doing him any favors. He had an expression of dread on his face, and what Scourge couldn't recognize was that it was partially mixed with guilt. He blamed himself for what happened to it and the people in it, and felt like he should go into the next one and just stay there, suffering like he did before, because it was entitled of him to ever question the status quo of his old life.

" D-Does it look like your old one? " Scourge whispered to him, rubbing his shoulder as he had him in a sideways hug again. " Yeah, kind of… same yellow look… " Miles said quietly, looking horrified at it. Trying to be a good friend while also encouraging him to be more like him and supposedly " loosen up " as he thought of it as, Scourge said eagerly, " Why don't we spray paint it to make it look different? " Miles looked at him surprised asking, " Spray, paint? We can do that? " He tried to hide his anxiety, knowing that the only reason he knew what paint was, was because someone threw a paintbrush at him and he had to get the paint out of his fur afterwards. He hated the way it smelled, and hoped that sprayable paint wasn't like that.

Scourge said with an excited chuckle, " Haven't you ever seen graffiti before? " Confused and baffled, Miles replied, " What's, ger-feet-ee? " having never actually heard the term before. Having to hold back another chuckle from just how innocent and cute Miles just sounded, Scourge answered happily, " Street art, on the walls and stuff. Come on, it'll be fun! Very satisfying and, it'll make ya feel powerful! Like you have the power to change how things look and they can't catch up to ya after doing it! "

Miles stared down at his hands as he twiddled his thumbs nervously thinking it over. He had a feeling that making graffiti would be a thing that would provoke people that Scourge wanted him to do. The consequences of not doing it, getting his only friend to disapprove of him as a spoil-sport, felt much worse than the potential consequences of spray-painting a building, which his super speed would very easily allow him to avoid. As long as no one saw him do it, how would anyone know it was from him? Even if they did, no one would be brave enough to call the police on someone as fast and feared as Scourge, or at least Miles hoped they wouldn't.

So after a few seconds, the heavy peer pressure combined with Scourge's reasoning made Miles agree, " Alright, " and Scourge replied, " Yes! " fist-pumped briefly much to Miles' confusion at having never seen that gesture before, and said, " I am so proud of you! Well, I was before, but now I'm even more proud. Come on, I know where to get some of that paint. "

Miles' first time spray-painting was fairly anxiety-inducing, as he hoped no one would see him, was certain that if they did, they'd stare at him and thus notice his second tail, making him the center of attention, and of course he feared consequences from the police as well, super speed or not. After all, they could still ask around town where he was and find him later, perhaps even in Scourge's house where he was usually safe hiding from the world. But Scourge's encouraging and reassuring words every so often, as well as the lack of any people moving down that particular part of the inner city, reassured Miles and got him at least relatively comfortable with continuing the task.

Trying to feel better about being forced to do it by making a picture he actually wanted to make, his first ever spray-paint " art, " was a large running mosaic of thunderclouds with detailed lightning coming out of them, pouring torrential rain down at a field full of bears and bats being struck by the lightning above them. Of course, it looked crude, since this was the only time he had ever even come close to drawing anything and he was new to using spray-paint – Scourge even had to teach him which way to make the can face so he wouldn't spray it in his eyes – but he at least used all the right colors of paint doing so, using his tails to fly up to the higher parts of the orphanage to spray it.

His art was completely upstaging Scourge's mere spray-painting dirty words and whatnot in the most uncreative display of graffiti imaginable, and he was fortunate that Scourge didn't care. If anything, he was just proud of him for trying to enjoy it.

Deep down, he didn't feel like he was making art, like he did when he played the violin. He didn't feel like he was making " street art " by spray-painting an orphanage's walls. He was just taking his anger at his old orphanage out on an unrelated one and falling victim to peer pressure like a weak-minded fool. But at the very least, the fact that he wasn't angry in the slightest while doing so helped him at least try to delude himself into thinking it was a normal and healthy activity. And when his conscience warned him that the owners and workers of the orphanage wouldn't appreciate his efforts, his personal hatred of orphanage workers only made him proud of what he was doing for standing up to bullies, and with that, he finally started to enjoy it.

When he was done, Scourge pulled him into a sideways hug once again, and as the two of them looked up at the front of the orphanage fully painted like a thunderstorm mosaic, he said, " I'm so proud of you. See, this is how you loosen up! Reading and playing music is alright, but stuff like this, is how you show society that you're in charge! "

With that, he ruffled his hair, and instinctively gave a quick kiss on the forehead to the little brother he never had, not even realizing he hadn't done it before as he turned around saying casually, " Love ya, little bro. Now let's get some lunch! " Appreciating the display of affection in complete bliss, Miles sighed with a smile, and took a second to notice Scourge was running away before gasping and running after him. They left the spray-painting materials behind, and since they were wearing gloves, they left behind no evidence of who did the deed.

The next restaurant they went to was the Moebian equivalent of McDonalds. Just as before, Scourge cut in line with Miles and got their orders first, which included nuggets, fries, and for Miles, a salad. The entire time they were in the store, Miles had to contend with hearing people quietly whisper about him and express disapproval of looking at his unique genetic feature. He tried his best to hide how sad he was because of it, having a serious expression and his arms crossed as he waited for his meal.

Soon, they were out of the store, but to Miles, it couldn't have happened soon enough. Scourge, of course, wasn't able to see his reaction to the whispering in the store because he was too busy looking ahead at the people working behind the counter. Fortunately for him not flipping out, he didn't hear what people were saying about his little brother because since his life didn't make him deal with such insults, he hadn't gotten good at pinpointing that kind of talk in the middle of random restaurant chatter.

They sat down with their lunch in front of the right wall of the building. " Enjoying your salad? " Scourge asked playfully, still not used to the idea of someone liking vegetables at all. Miles nodded, still lost in thought. " Come on, you gotta at least try a McNugget once in your life. You've been missing out! " he said with a forced smile at the end. " Okay, " Miles said reluctantly, taking one of his chicken nuggets and eating it.

After he was finished, he said politely, " It's good, " not too impressed. " Want more? " Scourge asked. " No thanks, " Miles replied, clearly preferring his salad. Scourge rolled his eyes, thinking, " Worth a shot. Then again, I guess I can't expect a not normal kid to have normal eating behavior… "

Suddenly, a buzzing sound was heard causing Miles to jump up from his spot on the grass gasping in panic, and Scourge immediately became alert and asked, " What's wrong?! " It was a bee. The kid clearly had experience with being stung by them, as he exclaimed backing away from it, " No, not again! Run! " and ran away from it in a yellow blur. Thankful that he at least showed he was in touch with reality by speaking directly to him, Scourge quickly got up and caught up with Miles before the kid could panic at being separated from him.

He had hidden himself in a group of bushes in the forest to the right of the fast food restaurant parking lot. " Good thing you didn't go far. I think we lost it, " Scourge said with a chuckle, trying to still be lighthearted and cheer the scared kid up. " Yeah, " Miles replied, forcing a smile. " Damn bees. This is why I hate summer, " he added bitterly, and Scourge was once again surprised and amused at him imitating his characteristic cursing at such a young age. Fortunately, Miles had instinctively kept his salad with him as he had ran away from the threat, so he was able to resume eating it rather easily.

" So how are you enjoyin' your day so far? You getting used to the people of the city yet? Likin' your new home? " Scourge asked him, continuing to eat the rest of his lunch. " I don't know. They still insult me, Sonic. They still call me names… " Miles replied sadly. " Like what? " Scourge asked with a serious expression. " The words, ' abomination, unnatural, abnormal, and mutant come to mind, " Miles answered bitterly, forcing an irritated expression on his face to hide the oncoming sadness. Needless to say, Scourge was far from happy at hearing that, and a desire for some kind of payback was only held back by the knowledge that they'd never stop, and that he could think of his regular mischief as that revenge later.

Looking depressed with downcast eyes, Miles continued, " The people of my island… they didn't just call me a mutant, they called me a demon, a monster… blaming me for all the bad weather the place had gotten! T-They said that because the spike in thunderstorms started when my parents left me there, I had the island cursed! They blamed me for everything! It's not fair! As if I like constantly dealing with the rain! " Scourge was struck speechless. At the same time, he did notice that the weather of his city had become more cloudy and rainy than it used to be, and that only started when he brought him home. But would thinking of those accusations as true make him no better than the people who made them?

Miles couldn't possibly have been intentionally causing thunderstorms as a baby, for years on end, so either the island inhabitants were wrong, or he could cause them subconsciously. If the latter was true, then he was far more powerful than he could've ever imagined. But Scourge immediately dismissed that as too good to be true. The fact that his best friend was a genius who could keep up with him and fly was amazing enough.

He became distracted from that train of thought when he heard a sniffle beside him, and almost immediately after that heartbreaking sound, it started to rain, as the clouds started increasing in size unnaturally rapidly above him and covering the sky. Thankfully, the rain was more of a drizzle at the moment, not enough to make him want to rush inside right away. " I-I love ya, little bro, " Scourge said to him quietly with a sad expression of pity, hoping that would be comforting enough to remind him that his present life had been a lot better than his past. Miles, who was wiping away his tears frantically with one hand and finishing the last of his salad with the other, smiled a little bit, and said, " Thanks, Sonic. I love you, too… "

Scourge smiled, while still being a little embarrassed and self-conscious of saying that, and while the rain continued to happen, it seemed to be completely caught in the leaves of the trees surrounding them during the rest of their time eating, keeping them from getting wet, and a thought crossed his mind and passed by that maybe, just maybe, Miles was directing the rain away from him.

" But that's ridiculous… You think he'd know he can do something like control the freaking weather by now, if he's been accused of it so much. Why wouldn't he at least try it out to see if they're right? I would!... But then again, I'm not him… " Scourge thought, only not doing more to comfort Miles as he silently cried due to the fact that his hands were too full of nuggets and fries to hug him. The minute they were free, he did exactly that, and the rain completely stopped as the sun began to shine through shrinking clouds.

As they ran through the city after they had finished lunch, Miles felt alarmed and gasped at hearing police sirens from a car driving around the corner behind him, and was immediately reminded of when he was back on that island when that familiar sound warned him of the people most dedicated to gunning him down. At least the teenaged gang members and random civilians had an incentive to keep him alive in the form of having someone to torment, but the police outright wanted him dead immediately for the " good of the island. " The mere fact that he had been told there were people of that occupation nearby him sent him into a panic, and he strained himself to move as fast as he thought he could, breathing rapidly with his heart pounding, the sky above him darkening as a thunderstorm started.

Scourge heard his rapid breathing and said to him while continuing to run ahead, " Miles, relax! That police car is way behind us and isn't even going the right way. And no one even knows it was us. The orphanage is all the way on the other side of the town, we'll be fine… " Miles whimpered, still following behind him instinctively even in his panicked state, and Scourge sighed heavily. " You know what? Maybe we should go home before we get too drenched in this rain. You've had a long day, " he said reluctantly, changing his course to heading home. Miles quietly replied, " Thank you, " and followed him home, hoping he'd never run into the owner of that police car.

The more time he spent running while scared out of his wits, the more absorbed in his memories he became, to the point where by the time he got back to Scourge's house, he was barely able to speak from being choked up and in tears. He flew over the gate in front of the mansion and rushed over to his room as Scourge had to stop and speak into the voice recognizer to catch up with him.

Knowing full well how upset the police sirens had made Miles, he ran into the kid's room as soon as he could get in his house. Seeing him crying into his pillow, he closed the door behind him and sat down beside him in his bed, stroking his head and back to reassure him. " It'll be okay… " he whispered to him, trying to force a smile.

If he was to have Miles break the law with him to join in on his fun, the kid was going to have to deal with the police a lot, and he was starting to get the depressing feeling that Miles wouldn't ever be truly happy with participating. While Scourge was an infamous juvenile delinquent who found it thrilling and empowering breaking the law and getting off scot free, Miles only became a nervous wreck at it from fearing the consequences. He wasn't a natural born risk-taker like him, he only broke the law because he thought he had to. Miles wasn't like him, and he might never be.

But none of that mattered. Miles was the only person who cared about him at all, the only person to tell him that he loved him. He was his only friend. " Beggers can't be choosers, I guess… " Scourge thought. Out of sheer stubbornness, he was determined to keep trying to get Miles to get used to his criminal life, thinking that giving up breaking the law just to humor him would make his life unbearably boring with nothing thrilling enough to fill the void. It wasn't like he could be a superhero or anything.

Stroking his head and back, Scourge thought as Miles cried under his sheets, " I love this kid to pieces, no matter what he's like. I'm not giving up on him. That past of his made him so restrained and afraid, he freaks out at even hearing police sirens at all, but if I can get him to loosen up, to be more like me, maybe he'll be happier finally. Maybe I can change him… "

Trying to distract Miles, he said desperately, " Come on, kiddo, cheer up!... H-How about a game of tag? " There was a silence as Miles looked at him confused, or at least tried to through the tears obscuring his vision.

Scourge awkwardly clarified, " You know, you chase me, and then I chase you! " " NO! No chasing! Please! " Miles impulsively exclaimed hiding under the blankets. He immediately felt even more ashamed, as the rational part of his mind knew that Scourge would never hurt him like his bullies did, but he impulsively acted like he would anyways. " Oh… Alright… " Scourge replied unhappily, understanding why he reacted that way.

He sighed, and realized that the only way he'd be able to make him feel better would be to give him a hug. It was a bit difficult since Miles was lying down in bed, but he managed to do it, and he could tell that Miles was calming down just from realizing what was going on. The sound of the rain outside seemed to change from a torrential downpour to a light drizzle, and while he couldn't see outside because Miles always kept the dark curtains on his window closed, the increasing amount of sunlight coming in from the curtains lit up the room regardless as the clouds in the sky became less dark than before.

" Why don't we take a nap for a while? Then I'll show you the last of the city, like the arcade where there's lots of fun games to play! And all for free! " Scourge said to him comfortingly, smirking at the end knowing just what he was going to do. Miles nodded, and sighed happily as he hugged his older brother figure as closely as he could get away with. As usual, Scourge felt a little self-conscious of just how nice he was being at the moment, but if it made his only friend feel better, it was worth it.

After resting for a few hours, Miles and Scourge finally got out of bed, with Miles being reluctant to do so, and the two of them left the house and ran to the city arcade at nearly the speed of sound. By this point, the weather was relatively sunny out, although still having puddles around from the rain that happened earlier, and Miles found them annoying, both because he could briefly see his reflection in them, and because they splashed him with their water when Scourge ran over them on the sidewalks. He avoided voicing those complaints in front of Scourge, thinking he'd only frustrate him because he wouldn't be able to avoid splashing him, and because he already thought he had too many triggers to begin with.

" Well, here it is! The most fun place in the whole city! " Scourge said happily as he ran up to the arcade and stopped in front of it. Miles smiled nervously as the two of them walked into the arcade together putting their sunglasses over their eyes and saw all of the different people in the building. The arcade was a bit dark in the lighting, which wasn't good news for Miles, who already had his dark sunglasses over his eyes and didn't have the best vision in the dark even without them, but he kept them over his eyes anyways, wanting to look menacing for the sake of it.

The sheer amount of people in the arcade made him anxious, but he tried to hide it with an annoyed judgmental expression, and tried to look cool by leaning his foot against the wall with his arms crossed, imitating Scourge's rebel relaxation pose. Deep down, seeing all of the children, teenagers, and young adults in front of the various arcade machines made him a nervous wreck. But he hoped that Scourge's presence alone would protect him.

Scourge ran through the entirety of the arcade at sonic speed in a blue and black blur throwing everyone on the floor, immediately getting everyone's attention, and cleared his throat before shouting smugly, " I'm back! You know what to do, bozos, hand 'em over! " with his hands in front of his mouth standing on top of one of the toppled over teenagers. After that, everyone started emptying their pockets of their arcade money and giving them all to him, and Miles helped him carry the various coins accumulated from his efforts.

" Now get outta here, all of ya! " Scourge demanded, an order that surprised everyone in the room but was immediately followed. Miles backed away from the people running out of the arcade, his back firmly against the wall. The only person who remained in the arcade was the intimidated owner of it, who they would have to awkwardly ignore. When all of the customers were gone, Miles sighed in relief, and Scourge returned to giving him the familiar reassuring smile that he always had. " Now lemme introduce ya to every game in the arcade! You've been missing out! " he said, less cheerful by the second sentence.

The first one he brought Miles to play was the famous Pac-Man. " You just put this coin in the thing, and then you move this lever around to move the cursor and your character, and press the button on it to do other stuff. That's how all arcade machines work, " Scourge explained casually to the confused genius beside him, feeling a bit sorry for how much he missed out on while appreciating how it made him feel smart. " What is this show called? " he asked, relating the screen on the machine to a television. " Not show, video game. That's what these all are. They're like shows, but interactive, you can control a character in them, " Scourge explained with a chuckle. " Cool, " Miles replied.

As Miles progressed past the game's title screen and started the game, he had to hold back from asking what he meant by cursor and character, as he didn't want to sound completely ignorant. It took him a second to realize the character he was supposed to be controlling was actually the yellow ball that appeared on the center of the screen, and even then, every so often he'd get confused and think he was controlling one of the various ghosts on the screen instead, not that he knew they were supposed to be ghosts to begin with. The primitive 8-bit graphics fascinated him, like he was looking at an entirely new world made of abstract concepts. Scourge generally stayed quiet and let him enjoy the arcade games he played as he himself played the one beside Miles, and waited for him to ask questions instead.

The games in the arcade included Pac-Man, Ms. Pac-Man, Galaga, Galaxian, Dig Dug, Pole Position, Pole Position II, Rolling Thunder, Rally-X, Dragon Spirit, Sky Kid, Xevious, Mappy, Pac-Mania and Galaga '88, and Miles enjoyed them all, more than any of the law-breaking he did, not that he'd tell Scourge that extra tid-bit. Ms. Pac-Man was basically the same thing as the previous game, which was a bit disappointing, and made him assume all video games were like Pac-Man, until Scourge casually explained,

" Oh, that's basically an expanded update of the game you played before, it plays the same way as the other one. Except you can hold down a button to go faster. " Miles appreciated that new information, and didn't seem to mind that he was playing as a technically female " Ms. " Pac-Man that time around, but the game only held his attention for one more level because he was so interested in playing the other ones with different gameplay.

He liked Pac Mania more, the game being a 3D isometric version of Pac-Man with the same basic gameplay but a more interesting looking graphical style to it, but he was eager to get to the other different-playing games. While he enjoyed making Pac-Man eat the ghosts, he could only do that after making him move into the big dots and then hoping he'd get close enough to a ghost in the first place, and most of the time, he had to nervously avoid the seemingly random movements of the ghosts, which made them feel like a constant annoyance.

Galaga, Galaxian, and Galaga '88 involved pressing a button and moving left and right to shoot down various enemies that moved around, which gave Miles a feeling of anxiety and tension mixed with the calm satisfaction of eliminating all the things threatening him. It ultimately wasn't worth the anxiety, but he did find the concept of eliminating threats rather satisfying for an arcade game, at least. It helped that they weren't real, so he didn't have to worry about feeling guilty and proving the people who demonized him right.

Dig Dug confused him a bit at first, and Scourge had to explain to him, " You have to press the button over and over to get rid of your enemies, " which sounded tedious, but was at least satisfying as he watched his character make the various enemies on the screen pop. He heard sound effects that seemed to create a nice melody any time his character moved, and that made him want to move around as much as possible to keep hearing it. It was fascinating to him.

Dig Dug didn't hold the evil genius' attention for long either, even if he did appreciate being able to experience it on principle. Pole Position and Pole Position II were racing games, and they had an off-puttingly different control scheme from the other arcade machines, featuring a steering wheel and a gear shifter for low and high gears – whatever that even meant – and an acceleration pedal. " How do you use this one? " Miles asked unhappily.

" Oh, uh, you sit down here, you turn this wheel to move the car left and right on the screen, you put your foot down on this pedal thing to move it forwards, and the gear shifter is there to make you go faster, " Scourge explained to him. He wasn't used to explaining video games of all things, when he was very obviously much more interested in having a reputation as a law-breaker and thrill-seeker, but for his only friend, it was worth it. " These two machines are racing games! The first of their kind, actually, " he commented.

Once Scourge explained the controls to Miles, he seemed to get the hang of it, despite clearly preferring the much simpler controls from the previous machines. They were games where Miles would control a race car and complete a time trial lap within a certain amount of time to qualify for a race against seven other CPU-controlled cars. One of the challenges of the game was to avoid going off the road because that would send the car crashing into the billboards. Scourge noticed glancing at Miles' screen that he seemed to be a safe driver at heart, not really being into racing to go as fast as possible. He stayed on the right side of the road at all times, and found the other cars annoying, not appreciating the challenge of a race. He only tried out the second Pole Position game just because, although like with all the other games, he was still happy he was able to experience them at all.

Rolling Thunder was a side-scrolling action game where the character would use various firearms to attack enemies, something Scourge could see that Miles clearly didn't feel comfortable with and was only able to deal with because of the 8-bit sprites making it hard to tell. At the very least, he loved defeating the enemies regardless, and commented at one point about the game,

" So I go in doors and move through high and low areas eliminating threats, with stuff that look like, guns. I really like being able to attack my enemies from a distance, at least, rather than getting right up close to one and hoping he won't hurt me. My character falls over in like two hits, so there's that too. Wish I had a way to attack from a distance in real life. I don't see why the character has to use, well, guns, though! Isn't there any other way? "

Scourge looked at him with sympathy and pity in his eyes at hearing that, not failing to understand the implications. He wished he could get him projectile weapons that weren't firearms that he'd refuse to even look at. " There's the bow and arrow, I guess, but no one's used those in hundreds of years, so imagine trying to find them, " Scourge replied awkwardly, choosing not to bring up the touchy subject with trying to convince him that using firearms might help him not fear them. " That's a good way to deal with animals in the woods. Can you get a bow and arrow for me? " Miles asked in confusion.

" Never mind. No one makes 'em anymore, and besides, it's better to attack head-on. Sure it sounds scary, but getting into the habit of that will make you braver than sticking back and attacking from afar… I could always compromise and get you a long stick to attack with, at least. We'll go in the woods to get a new ' staff ' for ya, how 'bout that? " Scourge replied. " Sure! Sounds good to me, " Miles said happily, unconsciously imitating Scourge's way of speaking.

It didn't take him long at all to move onto Rally-X, a driving game set in an overhead, scrolling maze where the goal was to collect flags shown on a radar before the red cars did. While the game itself was pretty simple and harmless, aside from the fuel system, the thing Miles liked the most about it was that it had actual background music. " I've never heard music like this before. What instrument is this? " he asked.

" Instrument? Uh, I dunno. It's 8-bit music, it comes from some sound chip I heard. T-That's what I heard some nerds saying here, anyways. It's trying to imitate actual instruments, " Scourge explained, caught off guard by the random-seeming question. A kid playing a video game and the thing he was most interested in was the music? " Maybe he really is a musical prodigy. Shame that can't do anything for me, though, " Scourge thought.

Miles, still focused on the game, asked innocently, " What does ' nerds ' mean? " Scourge was briefly surprised, before explaining awkwardly, " Well, uh, it means… Smart people. Like you. You're a music nerd! And they were game nerds. I'm not one at all. I'm a badass lawbreaker, a thrill-seeker! Y-You can be one, too, if you try hard enough. " He was about to explain the insult behind the word, but upon remembering how upset Miles got about how he talked about pretty girls, he realized Miles would just get upset at him labeling people again. Miles simply replied, " Thanks! " secretly wondering why Scourge would be so quick to deny that he was a nerd if all it meant was a compliment towards his intelligence.

" This game is kinda fun. Don't see what the worth of meaningless flags is, though, it's not like they're food or anything like the yellow circle ate, " Miles added. Scourge said, " Well, uh, they're very valuable flags, and the driver is sellin' 'em to the black market for a lotta money! Then he can buy all the food he could ever want! " proud of how he was able to think of that so quickly. " I wish I could buy stuff... " Miles replied sounding depressed, not even caring that he accidentally sent the car he was controlling into a rock.

" No one ever lets me buy anything. They take one look at my mutation, and take my money without letting me have what I asked for! How can they expect me to not steal from them and then turn around and kick me out of their stores when I try to pay them?! It's just, ugh… they deserved to be stolen from… " the four-year-old fox continued with a tone that alternated between bitterness and sadness.

Feeling sorry for him, Scourge was faced once again with the fact that his only friend wanted to be a law-abiding citizen deep down, and only broke the law because he felt forced to. He probably would've been a lot happier if instead of his best friend stealing ice cream earlier, he let him pay for it himself so he could actually buy something for the first time in his life. But that might only encourage him to obey the law, and while Scourge was certain he'd still be just as emotionally attached to Miles, he still didn't want him to become a regular law follower if he could help it. From his perspective, that would just be making him restrained as usual rather than showing him that he had the freedom to break the law and get away with it because of him, letting it finally sink in that he was free from the restrictions of his past.

Dragon Spirit was a vertically scrolling shooter arcade game where the plot involved a villainous dragon that captured Princess Alicia. No, not that one – and Anti-Sally didn't even go by that name back then – but Miles would end up looking back on it as a strange coincidence. Miles controlled a dragon that could drop bombs on enemies on the ground, shoot fire breath through the air, and unlike in Galaga, move in 8 directions, which was mind-blowing to him. The powerups that gave the dragon extra heads gave him double or triple the firepower, but they also seemed to decrease the amount of hits he could take from enemy fire, and in the later stages, the fire ended up being intensely difficult to avoid. As a result, Miles, being someone who didn't like anxiety and challenge very much, would end up preferring the simpler to control and understand Galaga despite the much less impressive graphics.

Sky Kid, which had by far the most memorable music out of all of the arcade games, was a horizontally scrolling shooter arcade game involving controlling biplanes through inhospitable terrain and bombing targets like ships. It was the first one Miles experienced to have multiple buttons instead of one, and the B button caused the plane to loop around, which he found pointless and even endangering at times. Needless to say, he didn't exactly discover a love for biplanes with the game like Tails would have. Still, he loved the music, and the satisfaction of eliminating various enemies without consequences like guilt.

Xevious was a vertically scrolling shooter with 8-directional movement and bomb-dropping like Dragon Spirit, but without the appealing interesting concept of controlling a dragon. As a result, while he liked defeating enemies in it, it didn't hold his attention for very long, especially since most of the games in the arcade already let him do that.

Mappy was a side-scrolling platform game with a mouse character that opened doors to get various household items like radios from six different elevations of platforms, using trampolines that would break upon being used a fourth time, and avoiding cat enemies in the process. Technically, the mouse character was a policeman according to the story, but to Miles, with the primitive graphics, it just looked like a mouse dressed in blue for some reason, and with the graphics of the game and arcade simplicity, he could easily believe it was about stealing household items rather than finding stolen goods to return them.

However, Scourge's passive annoyance at how he was playing the game soon discouraged him from continuing with it. When Miles finally noticed the art on the side of the arcade machine, he realized why. Neither of them liked policemen very much, but for two completely different reasons. Miles could at least respect the concept of someone upholding the law for the good of the people, he just didn't trust that someone not to abuse their power and hurt innocents regardless.

" So that's the last one, " Scourge said walking towards the exit of the arcade, smiling despite the dissatisfaction with the game Miles ended with. " So from what I gather, video games are about letting you eliminate enemies in a world free of consequences. Well, if you get hit enough, you have to repeat stuff you already did, but that's still better than what happens in real life. I wish real life was that simple… " Miles commented, as they left the arcade.

" Yeah, but in a game, nothing really matters. You don't have the satisfaction of building up a reputation getting yourself respect and making people do what you want. It's not fulfilling, " Scourge casually replied, only to have an oh crap moment at realizing that the final word of his sentence had opened a whole can of worms he didn't want to for Miles.

" Fulfilling… My reputation has never been anything I'm proud of. Is that the only thing you can feel fulfilled at? Is that the only thing real life offers? " Miles asked, hoping the doubt in his mind about it was correct. " N-No, of course not! There's also getting new skills and learnin' stuff so you can be capable of more. Getting stronger, accomplishing stuff! And hanging out with your friends, being cared about and making them happy, " Scourge replied hurriedly with a nervous smile.

" Friends… I see what you mean, " Miles said, sounding more at peace at hearing that. It was clear that he was getting his sense of fulfillment in life from being a good friend and being cared about, not from seeking thrills and building a feared reputation, but Scourge supposed he could at least appreciate how it meant it would encourage Miles to be as good a friend as possible to him, if he felt like that was his only purpose in life.

" That's not all there can be to life. You'll be almost just as feared a criminal as I am some day, I promise you, and then nobody will be gutsy enough to mess with you ever again! That's somethin' to be proud of getting, " Scourge explained to him.

It soon dawned on Miles that Scourge was trying to not-so-subtly guide him to living the way he wanted him to, just like how Scourge's father tried to pressure him to stop breaking the law and be a productive and responsible person, on the rare occasions he actually talked to him. Scourge, despite being closer to his age, was essentially raising him, just like his father at least in theory raised him. If there was anyone that he was supposed to be asking for advice, then, it was him, and since he was full of doubt and uncertainty, he realized it might be best for him to do that a lot.

He asked Scourge timidly twiddling his thumbs and looking down, " Bro, um, you know how you're the one raising me right? And, um, usually people who do that give valuable life advice on how to live life. W-What would you give me, for, uh, life advice? " Scourge looked at him surprised at first at what he was asking him, grinned in amusement commenting, " Never been asked that before, " and then after a brief moment of consideration, he smirked confidently while saying eagerly, " Live life to the fullest! "

Miles asked Scourge in youthful ignorance, " Uh, fullest? " not understanding what he meant. When he thought, " full, " he thought of how much water was in a water bottle, and wasn't sure how that could apply to life. Scourge lightheartedly teased him, " You know! " finding his ignorance cute. He chuckled and ruffled his hair before elaborating, " Enjoy life! It's as simple as that. Do what you want, and don't let anybody get in your way! If it makes ya happy, then do it! "

Miles looked stunned at hearing that advice. It wasn't that he was surprised that his thrill-seeking criminal friend was so hedonistic, it was more that he had no idea how to follow that advice to begin with. The only thing he could think of that he could do to make himself happy, and thus follow that advice, was to be a good friend and be cared about in return. Was that enough to make up for the depressing reality of how most of the people he passed by insulted him? Was that alone enough to make his life qualify as fulfilling and worthwhile despite him spending it breaking the law like a selfish nuisance? Was that enough to distract him from the violence and neglect he suffered in his past that he remembered every time he went to sleep at night?

" But in a game, nothing really matters, " he remembered Scourge saying, and wondered if it applied to his life, too. He determined that at the very least, he would focus on being as loyal and caring a friend as possible, because that was the only thing that gave his life purpose. He was Scourge's best friend. Without that identity, he was back to being just an ugly mutant.

" N-Now come on, little bro, next up, the playground! " Scourge said nervously with a forced smile, noticing how depressed and worried Miles looked at what he thought would be inspiring advice. This got Miles' attention, and the two of them ran through the city on their way to the playground in it. As Miles expected by this point, his brother ran in a tornado around it scaring everyone away so the two of them could enjoy it in peace.

Unfortunately, the playground wasn't exactly that interesting, especially compared to the fascinating and satisfying arcade machines he got to enjoy just before that point. There were just a few slides, including one that turned around, and there were monkey bars which Miles could easily fly up to, and all of the equipment was in sand, something he had learned to despise. Still, he deeply appreciated how Scourge was nice enough to make it so that he had it all to himself, and tried to enjoy it for what it was.

He mostly used the slides, though, as pushing the swing a little and seeing it go back towards him made him too nervous of the consequences of the swing hitting a person to even consider asking Scourge to push him in it. Besides, he couldn't imagine it being fun to just push someone on a swing over and over. He wanted Scourge to enjoy himself, too, and he wouldn't be able to enjoy his time there knowing Scourge wasn't happy.

After nearly a half an hour, they left the playground to return home, as it was getting close to dinner, and they preferred not to miss enjoying the dinner the servants at their mansion made for the house. After finishing a delicious meal of mashed potatoes, broccoli and steak, with Scourge giving him all of his broccoli, Miles was given some more ice cream with chocolate sauce as dessert, and while he didn't like ice cream headaches, it was at least tasty enough to be a nice treat as usual. The first thing they did after breakfast the next morning was go to a forest to find a long branch for a staff for Miles, giving him a weapon at last. He wouldn't be able to spindash while holding it, but it didn't seem to matter to him.

Scourge taught Miles a lot of common knowledge that he missed out on from not going to school, having proper social experience, or even watching the right TV shows. He felt like the wiser one compared to his naïve and inexperienced friend, and that only made their age difference feel more obvious, as despite being the one who wasn't the genius of the duo, Scourge was still the older and wiser one. He tended to read words on signs and whatnot out loud to subtly teach Miles how they were pronounced, and he would often have to correct Miles when he struggled to pronounce certain words, usually words that had two vowels right beside each other in them, and he had to resist chuckling at how cute he thought it was, even if it was from a tragic lack of education. It was strangely satisfying, casually correcting his mispronunciations and teaching him everything he knew. He felt like a parent.

The doctor raised his eyebrows a bit and joked lightheartedly, " You mean like, miles per hour? I can see how you took a liking to him! " He wasn't intending to make Miles uncomfortable, but it was clearly not a joke he was appreciating. " That's a new one, " Miles thought. He had almost never been made fun of for the pun on his name before. He supposed the fact that he pointed that out and not his second tail was reassuring, except he might have just been not mentioning his prejudice to keep from angering Scourge for all he knew. 

" He's not just my friend, I adopted him! Found him in the woods on an island last week and took him under my wing. He's part of my family now! " Scourge said, trying to reassure Miles by acting cheerful instead of annoyed from the doctor's joke. " Really? You went through the legal process and everything? " the doctor responded. " Screw that! Point is, he lives with me now, and he's like a brother to me. I don't need any fancy papers or anything to make that true. So why don't you give him a check-up first, see if he's alright? " Scourge replied, getting impatient. 

The doctor said, " Alright. I'm Dr. Hofstater. It's nice to meet you, " and Miles looked at him in a mixture of confusion, anxiety and suspicion. He seemed to be rather friendly for a stranger. He was a Moebian of the duck race with glasses and a white coat. Could he not see that he was a mutant? " Um, ditto, " he mumbled quietly with his head hung low, and Scourge rolled his eyes. 

The doctor proceeded to do the usual check-up routine on him, including the typical reflex test tapping on his knee lightly, checking his temperature by putting a gray thermometer in his ear, and listening to his heartbeat with a stethoscope, all the while with Scourge trying to quietly reassure him through his nervousness and discomfort. " How is he, doc? " Scourge asked casually. " His temperature's fine, but his reflexes are a bit hyperactive as you could see, and his heartbeat's faster than it should be, " the doctor explained. " T-That's just because he's nervous. He's never even seen a doctor before, " Scourge explained, hoping that was the only explanation and his only friend didn't have any kind of heart trouble. " Never? " the doctor said in surprise, concerned about just what kind of life that orphan had in the woods. 

" Anyhoo, all that's left is to test your eyesight. It's quick, don't worry about it. Stand on the other side of the room and read out the letters on that chart over there, " the doctor continued quickly. Looking unhappy, embarrassed and confused, Miles took a few seconds before asking him quietly, " How? " There was a silence as they both looked at him in confusion. " How do I, pronounce them? They're not even words, they're just one letter each. How can I possibly know how to pronounce them? " Miles said in confusion, getting the bad feeling that this was one of those things he missed out on learning about that everyone else knew by heart. " Some genius I am… " he thought, for what was far from the first time. 

Scourge thought, " He hasn't heard the alphabet? " dumbfounded by what he just learned, and briefly imagined himself awkwardly trying to teach him the alphabet when he would be too embarrassed to sing the alphabet song in front of him. Could he bring him to the window of a kindergarten very briefly just so he could hear it and then leave? Would that be too much for him? Knowing what his ignorance implied and not wanting to be impolite, the doctor instead humored him by saying, " Just say the letters how you think they should logically sound, then. It's to test your vision to see if you're near-sighted. " 

Miles sighed unhappily, and prepared himself for a long period of embarrassment as he reluctantly did what he was urged to do. He soon revealed that, while he could at least read in general, it didn't take long for him to start squinting and finding the letters too blurry to continue. By that point, the doctor decided, " Alright, you're done, then. " Scourge asked in concern, " So does he need glasses? " and got the reply, " Not quite, but his vision is below average. Just not terribly so. He might need some when he's older, though, if it keeps getting worse. " 

Scourge asked, " But why? " and started to get worried again as Miles explained, " I've, had a lot of dirt kicked in my eyes and stuff… and sand, and, one time something nasty called, ' pebber spray. ' D-Do you think that might be it? " The doctor had to hold back gasping sharply at hearing that, and so did Scourge, with both of them knowing exactly what he meant to say. After a few seconds, the doctor said in shock, " Pepper spray?... I, suppose so, but again, your vision isn't that terrible. I-It's perfectly servicable. " 

" What kind of monsters would do that to a little kid? " Scourge growled under his breath, head down and fist clenched in vengeance, and to his embarrassment, his family doctor turned to face him hearing him show that compassion. Miles was caught between appreciating how he cared about him and being annoyed that he was once again being referred to as a label, only this time it was " little kid " instead of " freak. " Sometimes he worried that it would never end. " I'm not that little, " he muttered defensively with his arms crossed, and while he tried to look annoyed, Scourge and the doctor only saw a pout, which made them smile at how cute he could look. Then the smiles stopped as they realized just how heartless his bullies must have been to hurt someone that young and innocent. 

Unfortunately for Miles, just then a nurse walked into the room carrying the next batch of flu vaccines, and he gasped in fear just from seeing them. Remembering what he said, Scourge told him, " Miles, relax! " and let him hug him tightly, returning the hug to hold him still as the nurse gave him the needle quickly. The familiar sensation of a needle pricking into his skin made him briefly yelp, and he started breathing quicker with his pupils shrunken trembling, close enough to Scourge that he could feel his heart beating faster in response. He didn't even notice that Scourge was being given a vaccine as well.

" No, no, no! I don't wanna die! " Miles exclaimed crying, frightened beyond reason as his mind flooded him with the memory of being pinned down by a gang member in the woods and having tranquilizer put in him. He was very lucky he was able to throw him off him with his tails, moving them almost as fast as the speed of sound throwing him into the tree ahead of him, and then rolled over, pushed himself back to his feet, and spun his tails behind him to get sent away in a blast of wind before he could finish him off. But all of the extra exertion only further tired him out, and the increased heart rate he had only spread the tranquilizer faster, and as a red haze blocked his vision, he eventually tripped and started tumbling down a rocky cliff, passing out before he reached the end of it. When he woke up, he was being held captive in a basement washroom, and while all of his injuries had been treated correctly, he would not be treated with kindness.

" Miles, it's okay! It's to prevent you from getting sick, not cause it! What the hell happened to you?... " Scourge tried to reassure him in vain. The kid was hysterical, hugging him for dear life as his only tether to reality, and even then, he was only vaguely aware of him. The doctor told Scourge, " Bring him to the bed, " and with that, he was gently carried to the hospital bed across the room and laid down in it as he fainted from fear, still clutching his chest, with Scourge having no choice but to continue holding him as the nurse awkwardly left the room. Needless to say, he shot the doctor a glare silently warning him to not let word get out about what a soft side he had. 

Getting the message, the doctor cleared his throat nervously, before cautiously asking, " Do you think he might have experienced some, trauma in the past? " " Ya think?! " Scourge said in annoyance, before briefly stroking Miles' head to reassure him. The doctor wanted him to get checked for post-traumatic stress disorder, but Scourge didn't look like he would be very willing to cooperate. He might be offended at the very idea, and accuse him of insulting Miles. Even trying to be subtle about it by saying he should get an MRI might just be too uncomfortable for the both of them. He supposed he would have to wait until the off chance Miles got a head injury and he had an excuse.

They both waited for him to wake up, with the doctor being uncomfortable with the wait looking away from them while Scourge tried to take a short nap with Miles, and he would've appreciated holding him a lot more if the doctor would have only left. Miles, however, felt content and at peace as soon as he regained awareness and realized that the person who cared about him the most was holding him in his arms, and he even pretended to still be asleep for a little while to keep experiencing it. Unfortunately for him, Scourge soon noticed the difference in how he was breathing and let go of him, said quietly, " You awake? Come on, let's go, then, " and they were walking out of the room before he knew it.

With the doctor no longer in earshot, Scourge said quietly, " So, Miles, uh… What was that about? " Feeling hurt, Miles asked with his ears drooping a bit, " What? " thinking that he knew about how he was trying to get him to hold him for as long as he could get away with. Scourge, not exactly the most tactful speaker, said unhappily, " You don't remember? The nurse gave you that anti-flu thing, and you freaked out! " Miles instinctively gasped at hearing one of the final words of his sentence. 

" What? " Scourge asked, realizing too late that he hadn't chosen his words carefully enough. He stammered afterwards upon noticing his tactless mistake. " I-It's just a figure of speech, Miles, I didn't mean anything by it. I meant that you got all scared, " he quietly clarified to him, and Miles quickly wiped away his tears, hoping it wouldn't be obvious to anyone seeing him later that he had been crying, as silently as he could manage to. " I-I don't wanna talk about it… " he said sadly with his voice cracking, and Scourge soon decided that for now at least, he knew enough. " Why don't I carry ya home, buddy? Run ya there faster, " Scourge said to him, and Miles nodded with a smile.

Scourge was worried about him for the entire time that he was running home, and between all the different places in the city that Miles was scared at seeing and the outright panic attack that the vaccine gave him, he was determined to do something to make it up to him, because his first two days experiencing the city only made him upset. Remembering what he said he'd do for him on the first day of their friendship, Scourge looked in the phone book for music teachers that would teach private lessons, and managed to find Miles a violin teacher. 

Calling the number, feeling awkward about what he was about to do, he tried to speak casually as he said, " Yeah, I'm lookin' for someone to teach my lil' bro Miles how to play the violin. You interested?... The name's Sonic, Sonic the Hedgehog. I'm sure ya already know my reputation by this point, and how rich my old man is. Point is, my new partner in crime wants to learn music, and if you're willing to be polite to him, and teach him what he wants, I'll pay you handsomely. " He smirked, planning on intimidating the music teacher into working for free. " Then it's a deal! You'll show up at my mansion for a half an hour every Monday and Wednesday at 4:00 PM, and teach Miles what ya know for as long as you want. Don't underestimate him 'cause he's a 5-year-old kid. He's way smarter than he looks. You might have a prodigy on your hands. " he said into the phone, and told them where exactly he lived.

Being able to find one caused him to use the same method months later to find a piano teacher for Miles after he was done with his violin lessons. The two music teachers, one after the other, were polite and intelligent people who were good at their jobs, and as Miles insisted on to repay them for their help, they would indeed be paid, rather than only having to do it to avoid injury like Scourge wanted.

Scourge threateningly warned both music teachers against ever hurting Miles or his feelings too much, saying to the violin teacher on his first day as he brought him into Miles' room, " Do a good job, and be polite to him! I swear, if you so much as slap his wrist, there'll be hell to pay! So be nice to him! Capiche? " The teacher, a tall lynx, nervously nodded as he walked up the stairs with him. 

Scourge knocked on the door of the guest room and said, " Hey, Miles! I got a surprise for ya! " in a friendly tone, before whispering to the teacher, " Wait here, " going into the room and saying to Miles happily, " I got ya someone to teach ya the violin, just like I promised! " walking up to his bed. Surprised, Miles turned off his TV with the remote control, stood up from the bed nervously, and Scourge reassured him whispering, " Don't worry, he won't hurt ya. You've got nothing to worry about. " 

Miles smiled nervously at the teacher as Scourge left the room, awkwardly trying to hide his second tail behind his first after the teacher noticed it. " Alright, then, I'll be your new teacher, Mr. Ivanstrom. I've heard you have a lot of potential, " the male lynx started saying awkwardly, noticing Miles' social anxiety and feeling pressured to not upset him. The last thing he wanted was to get on Scourge's bad side. " Let's start with the basics. Hold this bow and move it briefly along the parts of the strings I'll point out and I'll tell you what the name of each note is. " Miles said in confusion, " Bow? I thought that was a, projectile shooting weapon. " 

Mr. Ivanstrom, wondering if this response was due to his young age and lack of experience with the world, simply stayed polite and explained, " That's a different type of bow. This is what people use to play stringed instruments like the violin. " Miles replied looking a bit embarrassed with his ears down, " Oh, okay, " and followed his instructions, playing each note on the violin one at a time with the teacher listing the letter of the alphabet they were associated with and their pitch relating to each other. This didn't exactly teach Miles the alphabet, as he still didn't know the order all the letters were in, and he instead simply associated the letter names he was being told of with the notes he was hearing. 

When all that was done, he was told, " Well done. What I just told you was basically the scale of pitch. An easy way to remember the order of the letters is to remember the sentence, ' Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge. ' You take the first letter of each word in the sentence to get ' E, G, B, D and F, ' " and briefly explained which letter was the lowest note. " W-What's fudge? " Miles asked, embarrassed again of his ignorance. The teacher was stunned at the question, before answering, " I-It's chocolate, basically. You should ask Sonic to let you try it some time, it's really tasty, " before continuing on with the lesson. 

" Now obviously, having several notes play close to each other produces a melody you can hear, and there are many different melodies in the world that join into groups called songs. Technically, the word song only refers to music with lyrics in it, with actual words, but the definition can be used in a broader sense as well because ' this music piece ' takes a bit too long to say at times. Why don't you try playing this small song? " Mr. Ivanstrom said, pulling out of his black briefcase some sheet music, consisting of seven notes. After studying it for a few seconds after which the teacher moved it out of his sight, Miles ended up playing the song perfectly on the first try. Needless to say, the teacher was impressed. He was expecting Miles to stumble and play the wrong notes, but he memorized all seven notes and played them. 

" Splendid! You did it perfectly! How'd you remember so many notes at once for your first ever melody? " he asked, unable to hide his excitement for the unusual-looking child's talent. " Well, I remembered what each, letter, sounded like, and that created the melody I needed in my head, and I just played along with that, " Miles explained nonchalantly, confused that it was even considered a big deal. 

The teacher went on to teach him some other slightly longer melodies, including ones traditionally taught by music teachers like " Bah Bah Black Sheep, " and other nursery songs, which Miles had no problem with because he had no way of knowing the context those kids' songs were used in. Sure enough, Miles showed a knack for memorizing the notes of those songs, too. He often played music after hearing it being played by his teacher, and was always able to play it back to him. He didn't even see anything unusual about it. He heard a note, and it always stuck in his head what it sounded like, how much lower and higher in pitch it was in relation to the other notes, and most importantly where on the violin it was. He was taught about every single note that the violin could play, every single pitch. By the end of the lesson, the teacher, while not even close to done teaching him all of the songs he had planned, was already considering teaching him more about music itself, like the terminology associated with it such as tempo and rhythm.

Miles himself was nervous but polite to each of the teachers, appreciating how they weren't being abusive to him, and despite not liking his second tail, his teachers were nevertheless very impressed with his natural skill and quick learning. Scourge was worried upon the teacher exiting Miles' room for the first time, but cheered up upon seeing the smile on Miles' face and hearing from him in an excited tone, " I've learned so much! This is really cool. Thanks, Sonic! Make sure to pay him a lot, alright?! He's earned it! " revealing to Scourge's unenthusiasm that he had to pay him for his work after all. As Scourge remembered where exactly the money in the mansion was kept, Miles whispered, " He wasn't mean to me once! " to his relief, and then added, 

" By the way, we should try some chocolate ' fudge ' some time. Apparently it's really tasty! " As Scourge walked down the hallway leading to the stairs with him, he asked Miles with a smile, " It sure is! How'd you know? " and Miles told him about the pitch scale sentence he was told to remember. " Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge! " Miles said, with a childlike enthusiasm for the topic he was learning about that gave him a smile brighter than it had been in days. He may not have had a fun day before that point, being terrified by a simple vaccine, but Scourge knew now that he had made up for it. 

He politely stayed quiet and let Miles ramble on and on about what he had learned as he tried to explain where on the violin each note was without having the violin with him, before being interrupted playfully, " Alright, Mozart, settle down. Music is your passion, not mine, so I doubt I'll remember all that. I'm just glad you're having fun. " Unhappy at being interrupted and potentially being insulted, as well as the revelation that he wouldn't be able to share his new knowledge with his friend, Miles replied, " Mozart? " in confusion, trying to hide how upset he really was. 

" Oh, right. It's the name of some famous music-making guy. Lived hundreds of years ago and was great at the piano, so he was pretty popular and well-known, especially back in his time. 'Course, classical music isn't really the big thing anymore. No one's gonna get super famous and praised at being great at it now, but then again, that's a good thing for you, I can't imagine you'd like the attention. " Scourge explained. 

After a brief silence, Miles nodded, and admitted, " Yeah. I don't know if I'd be willing to play music in front of anyone if I didn't have to, " and whispered to him to avoid having the teacher overhear, " I don't like the idea that I'm being judged, that there's a lot of pressure on me to get everything right. I still can't believe I managed to do that well in front of him, considering that. "

The teacher walked with Scourge down the stairs as Miles reluctantly followed them to the front door, telling Scourge, " You were completely right! He's able to memorize notes and where they are on the violin and play melodies back to me, and without making any mistakes! I'm already considering giving him more advanced teaching! At that age, he's a musical prodigy! He has a lot of potential. " 

Unfortunately, Scourge didn't truly appreciate that potential. Miles' interest in music always just looked like some random hobby to Scourge, who didn't see how it benefited him personally, particularly considering that Miles was too shy to play that music in front of him anyways. He was proud of Miles, but didn't see how it mattered. Miles picked up on Scourge's cheerfully dismissive " it's just a hobby, " attitude towards his interest in music, even if Scourge never actually said it to his face, and this planted the seeds for a long-standing insecurity about whether his playing music was actually worth anything to begin with. Unlike Tails, whose passion led him to building inventions that his friends could take advantage of, Miles' passion for music didn't look like anything useful, just something he did because he liked music, and enjoyed expressing his feelings through it.

Having a music teacher for Miles allowed Scourge to not have to spend every single second of the day with a little kid around him, when he was trying to build a feared reputation in the city by himself. It was already getting out that he had a soft side thanks to Miles, and despite being lonely, the kid's clinginess was still a bit overwhelming for him. Unfortunately, the lessons only lasted a half an hour, and took place close to supper, when he was usually heading home anyways, so ultimately, it didn't give him any time to break the law by himself. Instead, he just ended up heading home with him a half an hour early from then on, watching TV while trusting Miles alone with a fortunately polite music teacher. Since Miles' room had fairly thick walls, like the rest of the well-built mansion, Scourge couldn't even hear the music he was playing to listen to his progress.

The third day that Scourge was giving Miles a tour of his city was met with some success for the most part, but there were still a few places that the kid was uneasy about. The day started out strong, though, with Scourge taking him to the book store, where there were lots of educational books, including ones on the weather and music, the topics Miles was most interested in. After looking around the store, Miles said in amazement, 

" There's so many books here I'd love to read! But I can't just ask for all of them at once. There's only so much we can carry home, and I don't wanna make you spend too much money all in one day… " That last sentence made it clear that he wanted him to pay for the books, and he wanted the two of them to be able to revisit that place a lot because of all the books he wanted to read. As a result, Scourge decided that he would need to use his stolen money to pay for the books rather than just taking them like he planned. He would later have to make this decision with the very next place they visited.

When they visited the CD store afterwards, he soon learned that it might be a good place to go looking for Christmas gifts for the fox, considering how much he took a liking to what it was offering. " Here's the CD store! " Scourge said to him. " What's a CD? " Miles asked him, and felt a little embarrassed at seeing the store owner out of the corner of his eye give him a funny look. " It's something you put in a CD player to hear music! " Scourge answered with a knowing smile, and just like he expected, Miles was amazed as soon as it dawned on him just how much music could be listened to in that one store. 

" Wow… There's so many of them! Would I ever be able to have time to listen to them all? " Miles said happily. " Why not when you're having your tea? I'll find ya a CD player and then you'll be able to hear all the music ya want! What 'dya like? " Scourge said with a confident smile, proud of himself for knowing him so well and being so excellent at making him happy. 

Looking confused, Miles said, " Uh, I dunno. Music with emotions I can relate to? With lots of passion, something that's not boring. I-I barely ever got to hear music, and when I did, it's not like there was anyone there telling me what type of music it was… " Scourge said, " Hmm… Got it, " with an understanding smile and a wink, easily figuring out the type of rock music he would like the most. 

When they were headed to the general store, Miles cheerfully decided to fly to take a shortcut to the store and jokingly switch things up by making it so he'd be the one holding the door open for once. Unfortunately, pushing on the door didn't cause it to open. Getting frustrated and with increasing desperation, he tried pushing on it as hard as he could, and after a couple seconds of trying to open the door before someone could run up to him, he started to panic, his heart beating faster as the familiar feeling of failing to open a door led to another painful memory.

" No, no, please! Open! Please! " he started saying quietly, trembling, and when he heard wind roaring behind him and a blue and black blur run up to beside him, he jumped and yelped, " NO! " startled and turned around terrified, backing up against the door ready to make an escape.

" Miles? Relax! " Scourge said with his previous playful joy turning into concern. A few seconds passed as Miles recognized who he was and calmed himself down, sighing at the end in relief as his friend's familiar scent, voice, body shape and blue color made him snap out of his panic. " What's wrong? " Scourge asked with concern, narrowly stopping himself from adding now to the end of the sentence and coming off as unsympathetic to his fear out of exasperation with it. Sometimes he hated having to regularly rethink over sentences just for him, and wished he could just speak his mind without thinking more often. 

" I can't open the door, " Miles admitted with downcast eyes feeling pathetic, ashamed at realizing upon saying the words how he panicked over something that was no big deal at all. He continued, " I just wanted to switch things up, hold it open for you for once, as a joke, but it didn't open. I wanted it to open… and you were running up to me so fast… " 

Scourge looked at him with sympathy briefly, wondering how many times Miles had to deal with being unable to open a door and being cornered by bullies because of it. Trying to reassure him, Scourge right away smiled and said, " It's a pull door, " and pulled it open with a grin. Miles giggled nervously scratching the back of his own neck, and said, " Oh, okay. I wish it said that on the door. " As he walked into the store alongside him, Scourge replied cheerfully, " Good point, that would be more convenient, " and they started walking down the aisle of the general store to the left of them. 

Pretty soon, Scourge and Miles were running through the store, and at some point, they stopped at a part of it that Miles found unusually cold. Scourge exclaimed happily, " The dessert aisle! There's some ice cream here! " and after taking a chocolate ice cream container out of the refridgeration area, he noticed Miles unhappily zipping up his leather jacket. " It's too cold in here, " Miles complained, looking sad and melancholic. Scourge looked at him in sympathy for a little bit, and thought back to the first day he met Miles, when he was telling him at his ship's restaurant how hard it was for him to survive the winter. 

Ruffling his hair, he reassured him, " It's to keep the ice cream cold, so it won't get all melty. We won't be here long, " and the two of them ran out of the cold part of the store immediately. Eventually, they left the store entirely, with Scourge not even paying for the ice cream. As Miles ran alongside him, he was about to point that out in confusion, only for it to dawn on him that he did it on purpose and think, " Oh, right. It's just some general store. He probably doesn't care too much about whether they want him in there, " and shrug it off. He had gotten so used to having to take his food from people's fridges that Scourge stealing food from a small-time general store didn't even faze him. He didn't understand why it was even wrong, and Scourge was in no hurry to tell him. All he did was say, " Jackpot! " upon getting the ice cream, and bring it home in a brief trip as Miles wondered what that word even meant, and refrained from asking and looking like an idiot.

Soon, they returned to the city, and one of the places Scourge brought Miles to get him familiar with it was the beach. They were standing on a hill overlooking it from above, out of sight of everyone there. " Pretty cool, huh? It's one of the most popular beaches in the state! " Scourge said with a smile. His eyes caught attention of a squirrel-race Moebian girl his age in a bikini, and he added, " Lots of hot chicks, too! " Miles looked at him in confusion after looking around the beach again, and said, " Chicks? " not understanding what he meant. 

" You know, the girls! " Scourge said cheerfully ruffling his hair at his cute naivety. " Uh, oh, okay. But if they're hot, why don't they just go inside where there's air conditioning? Is the beach really that fun that people will overheat themselves for it? Doesn't seem like there's much to do in it, there's just sand everywhere, " Miles replied, still confused. 

Scourge was surprised for a second before saying in amusement, " Hot as in, ' good-looking, ' Tails little buddy. Just look at 'em! " and wolf-whistled before putting one arm around Miles' back moving his other arm in front of him from left to right, encouraging him to take in the sights. Instead of appreciating it, though, Miles looked sad, and soon said with a depressed tone and downcast eyes, " Good-looking?... So you find that pretty important after all, huh… " 

Confused, and a bit annoyed, Scourge sighed in annoyance at him spoiling his fun and said to him mildly annoyed at first, " What's the big deal? I just appreciate how they look nice. I-I mean they work hard on looking good, some of them! G-Gotta appreciate the effort! What's to be sad about? " being nervous trying to humor him at the end. There was a brief silence before Miles clarified melancholically, 

" I just don't see how that matters… but I guess I shouldn't be too surprised. Everyone only cares about looks. Why would you be the exception? I-I bet if any of these girls didn't fit society's arbitrary standards on what a normal person should look like, you'd hate her, too… " His voice cracked at the end, and as he continued through his sentence, his two tails seemed to move in front of him, and he held them in his hands tightly, staring at them with a mixture of heartwrenching sadness and a scrutinizing glare. " Oh, man… " Scourge thought sadly, realizing just how deep that issue went with the child. 

Worrying that it could cause problems for their friendship if Miles started thinking about him like that and comparing him to bullies, Scourge placed his hand on Miles' shoulder and reassured him, " It isn't like that. It's okay. C-Come on, so what if you have one more tail? I think it's cool! Hell, I'm gonna go as far to say that I think every fox should have an extra tail! " Surprised, Miles looked at him letting go of his tails and letting them return to being behind him, and said to him, " Really?!... It would've been nice… not being the odd one out… " looking depressed at the end, but not nearly as much as before. 

" You can swim, right? " Scourge asked to distract him from his previous train of thought, remmebering how Miles had fallen into the ocean in front of him on their first meeting and was lucky he got thrown back on shore by the waves. The last thing he wanted was his only friend drowning on him. It was bad enough the previous two days out in the city were a disaster. 

" Yeah, I taught myself how. Had to observe other people do it from afar, but when I figured it out from practice in a shallow pond in the woods, it saved my life a lot. Can't fly under the water, though, the water's weight slows my tails down too much, " Miles explained, feeling embarrassed and self-conscious of how much unnecessary information he gave him afterwards. He thought, " I talk too much… " 

Scourge said in his usual carefree way, " Well, why don't 'cha try swimming here? It's what a beach is for, after all! " and smiled confidently, until he realized that Miles wasn't very happy at seeing all of the different people that were on the beach and in its water. " Hold on, kiddo, " he said comfortingly patting his shoulder. 

He quickly ran in a circle around the beach in a blue and black blur, using his super speed to kick around the sand everywhere and create a miniature sand tornado scaring everyone on the beach away. Seeing that there were still people in the water, he shouted, " Shark! " and since a shark movie had been released recently, they were on edge about it enough to immediately assume he was telling the truth and get out of the water, leaving the beach in a panic. 

The lifeguard soon went up to him, saying angrily, " Hey, what do you think you're doing? " Scourge smirked and created a sand tornado from running around the large muscular walrus with shades, completely unintimidated by him, and finished it off by homing-attacking him multiple times in a row. " Okay, okay, stop! What do you want?! " he replied in a panic, and Scourge demanded standing on top of his chest, 

" To have this beach all to myself, me and Miles! " which cued Miles to reluctantly run up to him after some hesitation and force a menacing look on his face to hide his fear. The lifeguard groaned and reluctantly nodded as he sat up, and Scourge said encouragingly to his brother, " Come on, Miles, the water's great! " 

Miles took off his leather jacket and got into the water at first, but seeing Scourge there near him made him really nervous, and he was promptly ashamed of once again being triggered by something that seemed on the surface to be very minor. Noticing Miles looking away from him nervously as he swam at the water's surface near the beach, Scourge asked, " What's the matter, Miles? Do you not like water? You're swimming great! " 

Miles knew it was completely irrational to worry that Scourge would ever even consider trying to push him under the water and hold him under there, when he wasn't like the bullies he had to deal with on his island, but there was still that fear, that overwhelming anxiety that automatically showed up every time he could face that risk. He still couldn't stop imagining the worst case scenario, and repeatedly considering the paranoid idea that Scourge might do that on a whim just for fun, just to see what it was like and give him a scare. 

" I-I can swim just fine… but I don't like it, " Miles finally admitted, trying to hide how afraid he was just from having someone near him in the water at all. He didn't think him being on the other side of the beach would make it any better, and in fact, the loneliness would make it even worse. The whole appeal of being out of the house was spending time with his only friend, and he wouldn't feel like he was if Scourge wasn't close to him, able to protect him quickly in an emergency. 

Scourge was a bit frustrated that he had wasted his time scaring everyone off the beach, and failed at giving him a fun place to hang out outside of the house, but tried to hide his annoyance for Miles' sake and humored him. " Okay, alright, we'll leave. I was getting bored of this place anyways, " he said, and Miles immediately swam out of the water and started rushing up the beach without looking where he was going. 

This caused him to suddenly fall forwards onto the sand with a yelp, having tripped on something left behind by the people Scourge scared away. Panicked, he exclaimed, " NO! " and struggled to get up as fast as possible from the strangely bumpy sand below him, thrashing his tails around wildly behind him as if to try and defend himself in his vulnerable state. 

" Miles, relax! " Scourge said to him once again at seeing him panic, and thought as he approached him from the front, " Damn it, that's gonna become my catch-phrase at this rate… " Hearing his actual name stunned Miles for a moment, and he slowly snapped out of his instinctive panic at seeing the familiar sight of a blue hedgehog go up to him. 

" Huh? W-What'd I trip on?! " Miles asked in a bit of a daze, regaining his focus on the present. Wondering just what kind of memory had been triggered in him and soon deciding that he didn't need to know, Scourge forced a smile and reassured him, " A sand castle, that's all. Luckily there was no one around to see this, " promptly remembered that the lifeguard was watching them the whole time, and was thankful that Miles didn't remember that and correct him. 

" Need a hand? " he said to him helpfully having his hand outstretched, still with a smile that masked concern, and Miles hesitated instinctively for a moment before happily taking his hand and allowing him to help him back to his feet. Scourge looked over at the lifeguard on his tall chair watching the commotion and shot him an annoyed glare, hoping in vain that it would warn him not to tell other people about his soft side. He wondered just how many people were talking about how they saw him interact with the two-tailed little kid and spreading rumors chronicling all of Miles' freak-outs, characterizing Scourge as a softie at heart, and his best friend Miles as a coward. " Well, these things seem annoying, " Miles complained bitterly about the sand castle, trying to blame it for his recent panic attack and feel a bit better about himself. He went to standing at his side, looking over the sand castle with irritation.

Scourge started out encouraging him, " They can be fun to build, " only to realize that this was the perfect opportunity to give him a motivation to encourage him to be more aggressive, and continue as if he meant to all along, " but they're even more fun to destroy! " Miles shielded his eyes instinctively as Scourge kicked the side of the sand castle once, not wanting to get sand in his eyes and embarrass himself with being triggered yet again in front of him. He wondered just how weak Scourge thought he was. 

" Come on, Miles, get your revenge! Kick it down! " Scourge happily encouraged him, snapping him out of his insecure train of thought. " Oh, right, " he said, and closed his eyes before furiously kicking the sand castle as much and as hard as he could until nothing remained of it, letting out stress and expressing anger that he usually wasn't able to at all. At the end of it, he sighed a bit exhausted, panting for a brief few seconds at how much energy he exerted taking his anger out on a mere sand castle. A part of him felt pathetic for wanting to do that. He wished there were more worthy targets for him.

" Felt good, didn't it? " Scourge encouraged with a hand on his shoudler, and Miles nodded in response. " Yeah, it was… good to be able to express my irritation with an action for once… felt less, well, powerless… " he admitted quietly in between breaths, a little ashamed and depressed. Soon, his eyes looked down at the front of his body, and he started dusting himself off depressed at how he was covered with sand. " Great, " Miles muttered, and grumbled under his breath, " it's like I'm a dirty homeless kid all over again, " not understanding that Scourge could hear him and looked concerned once again. 

" You should have a bath when you get home. Why don't 'cha wash up for a second in the ocean there and do the rest later? " Scourge advised him quietly, being a responsible older brother to him. Miles nodded, despite the fact that washing the dirt or sand stains out of his fur in an ocean instead of a bath or shower reminded him even more of when he was homeless. Scourge stared at the sight with a sad look on his face, thinking, " Oh, Miles… What am I gonna do with you? " hoping that he wouldn't always be like that. 

When Miles finished getting most of the sand out of his fur, he put his leather jacket back on, thankful that it hadn't blown away in the wind or something, and followed Scourge as he showed him around the rest of the city. For the most part, it went by fine, with Scourge casually explaining what the stores and whatnot were pointing them out to Miles and then running to the next area ahead, but after an hour, he ran into one of the last few areas in the city that Miles didn't like. " And there's the orphanage… " Scourge said casually at first, only to slow down speaking and get uncomfortable while saying the final word, remembering something he learned about Miles. 

The kid had mentioned to him earlier that his orphanage burned down, and sure enough, looking at the one in front of him wasn't doing him any favors. He had an expression of dread on his face, and what Scourge couldn't recognize was that it was partially mixed with guilt. He blamed himself for what happened to it and the people in it, and felt like he should go into the next one and just stay there, suffering like he did before, because it was entitled of him to ever question the status quo of his old life. 

" D-Does it look like your old one? " Scourge whispered to him, rubbing his shoulder as he had him in a sideways hug again. " Yeah, kind of… same yellow look… " Miles said quietly, looking horrified at it. Trying to be a good friend while also encouraging him to be more like him and supposedly " loosen up " as he thought of it as, Scourge said eagerly, " Why don't we spray paint it to make it look different? " Miles looked at him surprised asking, " Spray, paint? We can do that? " He tried to hide his anxiety, knowing that the only reason he knew what paint was, was because someone threw a paintbrush at him and he had to get the paint out of his fur afterwards. He hated the way it smelled, and hoped that sprayable paint wasn't like that.

Scourge said with an excited chuckle, " Haven't you ever seen graffiti before? " Confused and baffled, Miles replied, " What's, ger-feet-ee? " having never actually heard the term before. Having to hold back another chuckle from just how innocent and cute Miles just sounded, Scourge answered happily, " Street art, on the walls and stuff. Come on, it'll be fun! Very satisfying and, it'll make ya feel powerful! Like you have the power to change how things look and they can't catch up to ya after doing it! " 

Miles stared down at his hands as he twiddled his thumbs nervously thinking it over. He had a feeling that was a thing that would provoke people that Scourge wanted him to do. The consequences of not doing it, getting his only friend to disapprove of him as a spoil-sport, felt much worse than the potential consequences of spray-painting a wall, which his super speed would very easily allow him to avoid. As long as no one saw him do it, how would anyone know it was from him? Even if they did, no one would be brave enough to call the police on someone as fast and feared as Scourge, or at least Miles hoped they wouldn't. So after a few seconds, the heavy peer pressure combined with Scourge's reasoning made Miles agree, " Alright, " and Scourge replied, " Yes! " fist-pumped briefly much to Miles' confusion at having never seen that gesture before, and said, " I am so proud of you! Well, I was before, but now I'm even more proud. Come on, I know where to get some of that paint. "

Miles' first time spray-painting was fairly anxiety-inducing, as he hoped no one would see him, was certain that if they did, they'd stare at him and thus notice his second tail, making him the center of attention, and of course he feared consequences from the police as well, super speed or not. After all, they could still ask around town where he was and find him later, perhaps even in Scourge's house where he was usually safe hiding from the world. But Scourge's encouraging and reassuring words every so often, as well as the lack of any people moving down that particular part of the inner city, reassured Miles and got him at least relatively comfortable with continuing the task. 

Trying to feel better about being forced to do it by making a picture he'd actually want to make, his first ever spray-paint " art, " was a large running mosaic of thunderclouds with detailed lightning coming out of it, pouring torrential rain down at a field full of bears and bats being struck by the lightning above them. Of course, it looked crude, since this was the only time he had ever even come close to drawing anything and he was new to using spray-paint – Scourge even had to teach him which way to make the can face so he wouldn't spray it in his eyes – but he at least used all the right colors of paint doing so, using his tails to fly up to the higher parts of the orphanage to spray it. His art was completely upstaging Scourge's mere spray-painting dirty words and whatnot in the most uncreative display of graffiti imaginable, and he was fortunate that Scourge didn't care. If anything, he was just proud of him for trying to enjoy it.

Deep down, he didn't feel like he was making art, like he did when he played the violin. He didn't feel like he was making " street art " by spray-painting an orphanage's walls. He was just taking his anger at his old orphanage out on an unrelated one and falling victim to peer pressure like a weak-minded fool. But at the very least, the fact that he wasn't angry in the slightest while doing so helped him at least try to delude himself into thinking it was a normal and healthy activity. And when his conscience warned him that the owners and workers of the orphanage wouldn't appreciate his efforts, his personal hatred of orphanage workers only made him proud of what he was doing for standing up to bullies, and with that, he finally started to enjoy it.

When he was done, Scourge pulled him into a sideways hug once again, and as the two of them looked up at the front of the orphanage fully painted like a thunderstorm mosaic, he said, " I'm so proud of you. See, this is how you loosen up! Reading and playing music is alright, but stuff like this, is how you show society that you're in charge! " 

With that, he ruffled his hair, and instinctively gave a quick kiss on the forehead to the little brother he never had, not even realizing he hadn't done it before as he turned around saying casually, " Love ya, little bro. Now let's get some lunch! " Appreciating the display of affection in complete bliss, Miles sighed with a smile, and took a second to notice Scourge was running away before gasping and running after him. They left the spray-painting materials behind, and since they were wearing gloves, they left behind no evidence of who did the deed.

The next restaurant they went to was the Moebian equivalent of McDonalds. Just as before, Scourge cut in line with Miles and got their order first, which included nuggets, fries, and for Miles, a salad. The entire time they were in the store, Miles had to contend with hearing people quietly whisper about him and express disapproval of looking at his unique genetic feature. He tried his best to hide how sad he was because of it, having a serious expression and his arms crossed as he waited for his meal. 

Soon, they were out of the store, but to Miles, it couldn't have happened soon enough. Scourge, of course, wasn't able to see his reaction to the whispering in the store because he was too busy looking ahead at the people working behind the counter. Fortunately for him not flipping out, he didn't hear what people were saying about his little brother because since his life didn't make him deal with such insults, he hadn't gotten good at pinpointing that kind of talk in the middle of random restaurant chatter. 

They sat down with their lunch in front of the walls of the right wall of the building. " Enjoying your salad? " Scourge asked playfully, still not used to the idea of someone liking vegetables at all. Miles nodded, still lost in thought. " Come on, you gotta at least try a McNugget once in your life. You've been missing out! " he said with a forced smile at the end. " Okay, " Miles said reluctantly, taking one of his chicken nuggets and eating it. After he was finished, he said politely, " It's good, " not too impressed. " Want more? " Scourge asked. " No thanks, " Miles replied, clearly preferring his salad. Scourge rolled his eyes, thinking, " Worth a shot. Then again, I guess I can't expect a not normal kid to have normal eating behavior… " 

Suddenly, a buzzing sound was heard causing Miles to jump up from his spot on the grass gasping in panic, and Scourge immediately became alert and asked, " What's wrong?! " It was a bee. The kid clearly had experience with being stung by them, as he exclaimed backing away from it, " No, not again! Run! " and ran away from it in a yellow blur. Thankful that he at least showed he was in touch with reality by speaking directly to him, Scourge quickly got up and caught up with Miles before the kid could panic at being separated from him. 

He had hidden himself in a group of bushes in the forest to the right of the fast food restaurant parking lot. " Good thing you didn't go far. I think we lost it, " Scourge said with a chuckle, trying to still be lighthearted and cheer the scared kid up. " Yeah, " Miles replied, forcing a smile. " Damn bees. This is why I hate summer, " he added bitterly, and Scourge was once again surprised and amused at him imitating his characteristic cursing at such a young age. Fortunately, Miles had instinctively kept his salad with him as he ran away from the threat, so he was able to resume eating it rather easily. 

" So how are you enjoyin' your day so far? You getting used to the people of the city yet? Likin' your new home? " Scourge asked him, continuing to eat the rest of his lunch. " I don't know. They still insult me, Sonic. They still call me names… " Miles replied sadly. " Like what? " Scourge asked with a serious expression. " The words abomination, unnatural, abnormal, and mutant come to mind, " Miles answered bitterly, forcing an irritated expression on his face to hide the oncoming sadness. Needless to say, Scourge was far from happy at hearing that, and a desire for some kind of payback was only held back by the knowledge that they'd never stop, and that he could think of his regular mischief as that revenge later. 

Looking depressed with downcast eyes, Miles continued, " The people of my island… they didn't just call me a mutant, they called me a demon, a monster… blaming me for all the bad weather the place had gotten! T-They said that because the spike in thunderstorms started when my parents left me there, I had the island cursed! They blamed me for everything! It's not fair! As if I like constantly dealing with the rain! " Scourge was struck speechless. At the same time, he did notice that the weather of his city had become more cloudy and rainy than it used to be, and that only started when he brought him home. But would thinking of those accusations as true make him no better than the people who made them? Miles couldn't possibly have been intentionally causing thunderstorms as a newborn, for years on end, so either the island inhabitants were wrong, or he could cause them subconsciously. If the latter was true, then he was far more powerful than he could've ever imagined. But Scourge immediately dismissed that as too good to be true. The fact that his best friend was a genius who could keep up with him and fly was amazing enough.

He became distracted from that train of thought when he heard a sniffle beside him, and almost immediately after that heartbreaking sound, it started to rain, as the clouds started increasing in size unnaturally rapidly above him and covering the sky. Thankfully, the rain was more of a drizzle at the moment, not enough to make him want to rush inside right away. " I-I love ya, little bro, " Scourge said to him quietly with a sad expression of pity, hoping that would be comforting enough to remind him that his present life had been a lot better than his past. Miles, who was wiping away his tears frantically with one hand and finishing the last of his salad with the other, smiled a little bit, and said, " Thanks, Sonic. I love you, too… " 

Scourge smiled, while still being a little embarrassed and self-conscious of saying that, and while the rain continued to happen, it seemed to be completely caught in the leaves of the trees surrounding them during the rest of their time eating, keeping them from getting wet, and a thought crossed his mind and passed by that maybe, just maybe, Miles was directing the rain away from him. " But that's ridiculous… You think he'd know he can do something like control the freaking weather by now, if he's been accused of it so much. Why wouldn't he at least try it out to see if they're right? I would!... But then again, I'm not him… " Scourge thought, only not doing more to comfort Miles as he silently cried due to the fact that his hands were too full of nuggets and fries to hug him. The minute they were free, he did exactly that, and the rain completely stopped as the sun began to shine through shrinking clouds.

As they ran through the city after they had finished lunch, Miles felt alarmed and gasped at hearing police sirens from a car driving around the corner behind him, and was immediately reminded of when he was back on that island and that familiar sound warned him of the people most dedicated to gunning him down. At least the teenaged gang members and random civilians had an incentive to keep him alive in the form of having someone to torment, but the police outright wanted him dead immediately for the " good of the island. " The mere fact that he had been told there were people of that occupation nearby him sent him into a panic, and he strained himself to move as fast as he thought he could, breathing rapidly with his heart pounding, the sky above him darkening as a thunderstorm started. 

Scourge heard his rapid breathing and said to him while continuing to run ahead, " Miles, relax! That police car is way behind us and isn't even going the right way. And no one even knows it was us. The orphanage is all the way on the other side of the town, we'll be fine… " Miles whimpered, still following behind him instinctively even in his panicked state, and Scourge sighed heavily. " You know what? Maybe we should go home before we get too drenched in this rain. You've had a long day, " he said reluctantly, changing his course to heading home. Miles quietly replied, " Thank you, " and followed him home, hoping he'd never run into the owner of that police car. 

The more time he spent running while scared out of his wits, the more absorbed in his memories he became, to the point where by the time he got back to Scourge's house, he was barely able to speak from being choked up and in tears. He flew over the gate in front of the mansion and rushed over to his room as Scourge had to stop and speak into the voice recognizer to catch up with him. 

Knowing full well how upset the police sirens had made Miles, he ran into the kid's room as soon as he could get in his house. Seeing him crying into his pillow, he closed the door behind him and sat down beside him in his bed, stroking his head and back to reassure him. " It'll be okay… " he whispered to him, trying to force a smile. 

If he was to have Miles break the law with him to join in on his fun, the kid was going to have to deal with the police a lot, and he was starting to get the depressing feeling that Miles wouldn't ever be truly happy with participating. While Scourge was an infamous juvenile delinquent who found it thrilling and empowering breaking the law and getting off scot free, Miles only became a nervous wreck at it from fearing the consequences. He wasn't a natural born risk-taker like him, he only broke the law because he thought he had to. Miles wasn't like him, and he might never be. 

But none of that mattered. Miles was the only person who cared about him at all, the only person to tell him that he loved him. He was his only friend. " Beggers can't be choosers, I guess… " Scourge thought. Out of sheer stubbornness, he was determined to keep trying to get Miles to get used to his criminal life, thinking that giving up breaking the law just to humor him would make his life unbearably boring with nothing thrilling enough to fill the void. It wasn't like he could be a superhero or anything. 

Stroking his head and back, Scourge thought as Miles cried under his sheets, " I love this kid to pieces, no matter what he's like. I'm not giving up on him. That past of his made him so restrained and afraid, he freaks out at even hearing police sirens at all, but if I can get him to loosen up, to be more like me, maybe he'll be happier finally. Maybe I can change him… " 

Trying to distract Miles, he said desperately, " Come on, kiddo, cheer up!... H-How about a game of tag? " There was a silence as Miles looked at him confused, or at least tried to through the tears obscuring his vision. 

Scourge awkwardly clarified, " You know, you chase me, and then I chase you! " " NO! No chasing! Please! " Miles impulsively exclaimed hiding under the blankets. He immediately felt even more ashamed, as the rational part of his mind knew that Scourge would never hurt him like his bullies did, but he impulsively acted like he would anyways. " Oh… Alright… " Scourge replied unhappily, understanding why he reacted that way. 

He sighed, and realized that the only way he'd be able to make him feel better would be to give him a hug. It was a bit difficult since Miles was lying down in bed, but he managed to do it, and he could tell that Miles was calming down just from realizing what was going on. The sound of the rain outside seemed to change from a torrential downpour to a light drizzle, and while he couldn't see outside because Miles always kept the dark curtains on his window closed, the increasing amount of sunlight coming in from the curtains lit up the room regardless as the clouds in the sky became less dark than before. 

" Why don't we take a nap for a while? Then I'll show you the last of the city, like the arcade where there's lots of fun games to play! And all for free! " Scourge said to him comfortingly, smirking at the end knowing just what he was going to do. Miles nodded, and sighed happily as he hugged his older brother figure as closely as he could get away with. As usual, Scourge felt a little self-conscious of just how nice he was being at the moment, but if it made his only friend feel better, it was worth it. 

After resting for a few hours, Miles and Scourge finally got out of bed, with Miles being reluctant to do so, and the two of them left the house and ran to the city arcade at nearly the speed of sound. By this point, the weather was relatively sunny out, although still having puddles around from the rain that happened earlier, and Miles found them annoying, both because he could briefly see his reflection in them, and because they splashed him with their water when Scourge ran over them on the sidewalk. He avoided voicing those complaints in front of Scourge, thinking he'd only frustrate him because he wouldn't be able to avoid splashing him, and because he already thought he had too many triggers to begin with. 

" Well, here it is! The most fun place in the whole city! " Scourge said happily as he ran up to the arcade and stopped in front of it. Miles smiled nervously as the two of them walked into the arcade together putting their sunglasses over their eyes and saw all of the different people in the building. The arcade was a bit dark in the lighting, which wasn't good news for Miles, who already had his dark sunglasses over his eyes and didn't have the best vision in the dark even without them, but he kept them over his eyes anyways, wanting to look menacing for the sake of it. The sheer amount of people in the arcade made him anxious, but he tried to hide it with an annoyed judgmental expression, and tried to look cool by leaning his foot against the wall with his arms crossed, imitating Scourge's rebel relaxation pose. Deep down, seeing all of the children, teenagers, and young adults in front of the various arcade machines made him a nervous wreck. But he hoped that Scourge's presence alone would protect him. 

Scourge ran through the entirety of the arcade at sonic speed in a blue and black blur throwing everyone on the floor, immediately getting everyone's attention, and cleared his throat before shouting smugly, " I'm back! You know what to do, bozos, hand 'em over! " with his hands in front of his mouth standing on top of one of the toppled over teenagers. After that, everyone starting emptying their pockets of their arcade money and giving them all to him, and Miles helped him carry the various coins accumulated from his efforts. 

" Now get outta here, all of ya! " Scourge demanded, an order that surprised everyone in the room but was immediately followed. Miles backed away from the people running out of the arcade, his back firmly against the wall. The only person who remained in the arcade was the intimidated owner of it, who they would have to awkwardly ignore. When all of the customers were gone, Miles sighed in relief, and Scourge returned to giving him the familiar reassuring smile that he always had. " Now lemme introduce ya to every game in the arcade! You've been missing out! " he said, less cheerful by the second sentence. 

The first one he brought Miles to play was the famous Pac-Man. " You just put this coin in the thing, and then you move this lever around to move the cursor and your character, and press the button on it to do other stuff. That's how all arcade machines work, " Scourge explained casually to the confused genius beside him, feeling a bit sorry for how much he missed out on while appreciating how it made him feel smart. " What is this show called? " he asked, relating the screen on the machine to a television. " Not show, video game. That's what these all are. They're like shows, but interactive, you can control a character in them, " Scourge explained with a chuckle. " Cool, " Miles replied.

As Miles progressed past the game's title screen and started the game, he had to hold back from asking what he meant by cursor and character, as he didn't want to sound completely ignorant. It took him a second to realize the character he was supposed to be controlling was actually the yellow ball appearing on the center of the screen, and even then, every so often he'd get confused and think he was controlling one of the various ghosts on the screen instead, not that he knew they were supposed to be ghosts to begin with. The primitive 8-bit graphics fascinated him, like he was looking at an entirely new world made of abstract concepts. Scourge generally stayed quiet and let him enjoy the arcade games he played as he himself played the one beside Miles, and waited for him to ask questions instead.

The games in the arcade included Pac-Man, Ms. Pac-Man, Galaga, Galaxian, Dig Dug, Pole Position, Pole Position II, Rolling Thunder, Rally-X, Dragon Spirit, Sky Kid, Xevious, Mappy, Pac-Mania and Galaga '88, and Miles enjoyed them all, more than any of the law-breaking he did, not that he'd tell Scourge that extra tid-bit. Ms. Pac-Man was basically the same thing as the previous game, which was a bit disappointing, and made him assume all video games were like Pac-Man, until Scourge casually explained, " Oh, that's basically an expanded update of the game you played before, it plays the same way as the other one. Except you can hold down a button to go faster. " Miles appreciated that new information, and didn't seem to mind that he was playing as a technically female " Ms. " Pac-Man that time around, but the game only held his attention for one more level because he was so interested in playing the other ones with different gameplay. 

He liked Pac Mania more, the game being a 3D isometric version of Pac-Man with the same basic gameplay but a more interesting look graphical style to it, but he was eager to get to the other different-playing games. While he enjoyed making Pac-Man eat the ghosts, he could only do that after making him move into the big dots and then hoping he'd get close enough to a ghost in the first place, and most of the time, he had to nervously avoid the seemingly random movements of the ghosts, which made them feel like a constant annoyance.

Galaga, Galaxian, and Galaga '88 involved pressing a button and moving left and right to shoot down various enemies that moved around, which gave Miles a feeling of anxiety and tension mixed with the calm satisfaction of eliminating all the things threatening him. It ultimately wasn't worth the anxiety, but he did find the concept of eliminating threats rather satisfying for an arcade game, at least. It helped that they weren't real, so he didn't have to worry about feeling guilty and proving the people who demonized him right. 

Dig Dug confused him a bit at first, and Scourge had to explain to him, " You have to press the button over and over to get rid of your enemies, " which sounded tedious, but was at least satisfying as he watched his character make the various enemies on the screen pop. He heard sound effects that seemed to create a nice melody any time his character moved, and that made him want to move around as much as possible to keep hearing it. It was fascinating to him.

Dig Dug didn't hold the evil genius' attention for long either, even if he did appreciate being able to experience it on principle. Pole Position and Pole Position II were racing games, and they had an off-puttingly different control scheme from the other arcade machines, featuring a steering wheel and a gear shifter for low and high gears – whatever that even meant – and an acceleration pedal. " How do you use this one? " Miles asked unhappily. " Oh, uh, you sit down here, you turn this wheel to move the car left and right on the screen, you put your foot down on this pedal thing to move it forwards, and the gear shifter is there to make you go faster, " Scourge explained to him. He wasn't used to explaining video games of all things, when he was very obviously much more interested in having a reputation as a law-breaker and thrill-seeker, but for his only friend, it was worth it. " These two machines are racing games! The first of their kind, actually, " he commented.

Once Scourge explained the controls to Miles, he seemed to get the hang of it, despite clearly preferring the much simpler controls from the previous machines. They were games where Miles would control a race car and complete a time trial lap within a certain amount of time to qualify for a race against seven other CPU-controlled cars. One of the challenges of the game was to avoid going off the road because that would send the car crashing into the billboards. Scourge noticed glancing at Miles' screen that he seemed to be a safe driver at heart, not really being into racing to go as fast as possible. He stayed on the right side of the road at all times, and found the other cars annoying, not appreciating the challenge of a race. He only tried out the second Pole Position game just because, although like with all the other games, he was still happy he was able to experience them at all.

Rolling Thunder was a side-scrolling action game where the character would use various firearms to attack enemies, something Scourge could see that Miles clearly didn't feel comfortable with and was only able to deal with because of the 8-bit sprites making it hard to tell. At the very least, he loved defeating the enemies regardless, and commented at one point about the game, " So I go in doors and move through high and low areas eliminating threats, with stuff that look like, guns. I really like being able to attack my enemies from a distance, at least, rather than getting right up close to one and hoping he won't hurt me. My character falls over in like two hits, so there's that too. Wish I had a way to attack from a distance in real life. I don't see why the character has to use, well, guns, though! Isn't there any other way? " 

Scourge looked at him with sympathy and pity in his eyes at hearing that, not failing to understand the implications. He wished he could get him projectile weapons that weren't firearms that he'd refuse to even look at. " There's the bow and arrow, I guess, but no one's used those in hundreds of years, so imagine trying to find them, " Scourge replied awkwardly, choosing not to bring up the touchy subject by trying to convince him using firearms might help him not fear them. " That's a good way to deal with animals in the woods. Can you get a bow and arrow for me? " Miles asked in confusion. 

" Never mind. No one makes 'em anymore, and besides, it's better to attack head-on. Sure it sounds scary, but getting into the habit of that will make you braver than sticking back and attacking from afar… I could always compromise and get you a long stick to attack with, at least. We'll go in the woods to get a new ' staff ' for ya, how 'bout that? " Scourge replied. " Sure! Sounds good to me, " Miles said happily, unconsciously imitating Scourge's way of speaking in the second sentence. 

It didn't take him long at all to move onto Rally-X, a driving game set in an overhead, scrolling maze where the goal was to collect flags shown on a radar before the red cars did. While the game itself was pretty simple and harmless, aside from the fuel system, the thing Miles liked the most about it was that it had actual background music. " I've never heard music like this before. What instrument is this? " he asked. 

" Instrument? Uh, I dunno. It's 8-bit music, it comes from some sound chip I heard. T-That's what I heard some nerds saying here, anyways. It's trying to imitate actual instruments, " Scourge explained, caught off guard by the random-seeming question. A kid playing a video game and the thing he was most interested in was the music? " Maybe he really is a musical prodigy. Shame that can't do anything for me, though, " Scourge thought. 

Miles, still focused on the game, asked innocently, " What does ' nerds ' mean? " Scourge was briefly surprised, before explaining awkwardly, " Well, uh, it means… Smart people. Like you. You're a music nerd! And they were game nerds. I'm not one at all. I'm a badass lawbreaker, a thrill-seeker! Y-You can be one, too, if you try hard enough. " He was about to explain the insult behind the word, but upon remembering how upset Miles got about how he talked about pretty girls, he realized Miles would just get upset at him labeling people again. Miles simply replied, " Thanks! " secretly wondering why Scourge would be so quick to deny that he was a nerd if all it meant was a compliment towards his intelligence. 

" This game is kinda fun. Don't see what the worth of meaningless flags is, though, it's not like they're food or anything like the yellow circle ate, " Miles added. Scourge said, " Well, uh, they're very valuable flags, and the driver is sellin' 'em to the black market for a lotta money! Then he can buy all the food he could ever want! " proud of how he was able to think of that so quickly. " I wish I could buy stuff... " Miles replied sounding depressed, not even caring that he accidentally sent the car he was controlling into a rock. 

" No one ever lets me buy anything. They take one look at my mutation, and take my money without letting me have what I asked for! How can they expect me to not steal from them and then turn around and kick me out of their stores when I try to pay them?! It's just, ugh… they deserved to be stolen from… " the four-year-old fox continued with a tone that alternated between bitterness and sadness. 

Feeling sorry for him, Scourge was faced once again with the fact that his only friend wanted to be a law-abiding citizen deep down, and only broke the law because he felt forced to. He probably would've been a lot happier if instead of his best friend stealing ice cream earlier, he let him pay for it himself so he could actually buy something for the first time. But that might only encourage him to obey the law, and while Scourge was certain he'd still be just as emotionally attached to Miles, he still didn't want him to become a regular law follower if he could help it. From his perspective, that would just be making him restrained as usual rather than showing him that he had the freedom to break the law and get away with it because of him, letting it finally sink in that he was free from the restrictions of his past.

Dragon Spirit was a vertically scrolling shooter arcade game where the plot involved a villainous dragon that captured Princess Alicia. No, not that one – and Anti-Sally didn't even go by that name back then – but Miles did end up looking back on it as a strange coincidence. Miles would control a dragon that could drop bombs on enemies on the ground, shoot fire breath through the air, and unlike in Galaga, move in 8 directions, which was mind-blowing to him. The powerups that gave the dragon extra heads gave him double or triple the firepower, but they also seemed to decrease the amount of hits he could take from enemy fire, and in the later stages, the fire ended up being intensely difficult to avoid. As a result, Miles, being someone who didn't like anxiety and challenge very much, would end up preferring the simpler to control and understand Galaga despite the much less impressive graphics. 

Sky Kid, which had by far the most memorable music out of all of the arcade games, was a horizontally scrolling shooter arcade game involving controlling biplanes through inhospitable terrain and bombing targets like ships. It was the first one Miles experienced to have multiple buttons instead of one, and the B button caused the plane to loop around, which he found pointless and even endangering at times. Needless to say, he didn't exactly discover a love for biplanes with the game like Tails would have. Still, he loved the music, and the satisfaction of eliminating various enemies without consequences like guilt. 

Xevious was a vertically scrolling shooter with 8-directional movement and bomb-dropping like Dragon Spirit, but without the appealing interesting concept of controlling a dragon. As a result, while he liked defeating enemies in it, it didn't hold his attention for very long, especially since most of the games in the arcade already let him do that. 

Mappy was a side-scrolling platform game with a mouse character that opened doors to get various household items like radios from six different elevations of platforms, using trampolines that would break upon being used a fourth time, and avoiding cat enemies in the process. Technically, the mouse character was a policeman according to the story, but to Miles, with the primitive graphics, it just looked like a mouse dressed in blue for some reason, and with the graphics of the game and arcade simplicity, he could easily believe it was about stealing household items rather than finding stolen goods to return them. 

However, Scourge's passive annoyance at how he was playing the game soon discouraged him from continuing with it. When Miles finally noticed the art on the side of the arcade machine, he realized why. Neither of them liked policemen very much, but for two completely different reasons. Miles could at least respect the concept of someone upholding the law for the good of the people, he just didn't trust that someone not to abuse their power and hurt innocents regardless. 

" So that's the last one, " Scourge said walking towards the exit of the arcade, smiling despite the dissatisfaction with the game Miles ended with. " So from what I gather, video games are about letting you eliminate enemies in a world free of consequences. Well, if you get hit enough, you have to repeat stuff you already did, but that's still better than what happens in real life. I wish real life was that simple… " Miles commented, as they left the arcade. 

" Yeah, but in a game, nothing really matters. You don't have the satisfaction of building up a reputation getting yourself respect and making people do what you want. It's not fulfilling, " Scourge casually replied, only to have an oh crap moment at realizing that the final word of his sentence had opened a whole can of worms he didn't want to for Miles. 

" Fulfilling… My reputation has never been anything I'm proud of. Is that the only thing you can feel fulfilled at? Is that the only thing real life offers? " Miles asked, hoping the doubt in his mind about it was correct. " N-No, of course not! There's also getting new skills and learnin' stuff so you can be capable of more. Getting stronger, accomplishing stuff! And hanging out with your friends, being cared about and making them happy, " Scourge replied hurriedly with a nervous smile. 

" Friends… I see what you mean, " Miles said, sounding more at peace at hearing that. It was clear that he was getting his sense of fulfillment in life from being a good friend and being cared about, not from seeking thrills and building a feared reputation, but Scourge supposed he could at least appreciate how it meant it would encourage Miles to be as good a friend as possible to him, if he felt like that was his only purpose in life. 

" That's not all there can be to life. You'll be almost just as feared a criminal as I am some day, I promise you, and then nobody will be gutsy enough to mess with you again! That's somethin' to be proud of getting. " Scourge explained to him. 

It soon dawned on Miles that Scourge was trying to not-so-subtly guide him to living the way he wanted him to, just like how Scourge's father tried to pressure him to stop breaking the law and be a productive and responsible person, on the rare occasions he actually talked to him. Scourge, despite being closer to his age, was essentially raising him, just like his father at least in theory raised him. If there was anyone that he was supposed to be asking for advice, then, it was him, and since he was full of doubt and uncertainty, he realized it might be best for him to do that a lot. 

He asked Scourge timidly twiddling his thumbs and looking down, " Bro, um, you know how you're the one raising me right? And, um, usually people who do that give valuable life advice on how to live life. W-What would you give me, for, uh, life advice? " Scourge looked at surprised at first at what he was asking him, grinned in amusement commenting, " Never been asked that before, " and then after a brief moment of consideration, he smirked confidently while saying eagerly, " Live life to the fullest! " 

Miles asked Scourge in youthful ignorance, " Uh, fullest? " not understanding what he meant. When he thought, " full, " he thought of how much water was in a water bottle, and wasn't sure how that could apply to life. Scourge lightheartedly teased him, " You know! " finding his ignorance cute. He chuckled and ruffled his hair before elaborating, " Enjoy life! It's as simple as that. Do what you want, and don't let anybody get in your way! If it makes ya happy, then do it! " 

Miles looked stunned at hearing that advice. It wasn't that he was surprised that his thrill-seeking criminal friend was so hedonistic, it was more that he had no idea how to follow that advice to begin with. The only thing he could think of that he could do to make himself happy, and thus follow that advice, was to be a good friend and be cared about in return. Was that enough to make up for the depressing reality of how most of the people he passed by insulted him? Was that alone enough to make his life qualify as fulfilling and worthwhile despite him spending it breaking the law like a selfish nuisance? Was that enough to distract him from the violence and neglect he suffered in his past that he remembered every time he went to sleep at night? 

" But in a game, nothing really matters, " he remembered Scourge saying, and wondered if it applied to his life, too. He determined that at the very least, he would focus on being as loyal and caring a friend as possible, because that was the only thing that gave his life purpose. He was Scourge's best friend. Without that identity, he was back to being just an ugly mutant.

" N-Now come on, little bro, next up, the playground! " Scourge said nervously with a forced smile, noticing how depressed and worried Miles looked at what he thought would be inspiring advice. This got Miles' attention, and the two of them ran through the city on their way to the playground in it. As Miles expected by this point, his brother ran in a tornado around it scaring everyone away so the two of them could enjoy it in peace. 

Unfortunately, the playground wasn't exactly that interesting, especially compared to the fascinating and satisfying arcade machines he got to enjoy just before that point. There were just a few slides, including one that turned around, and there were monkey bars which Miles could easily fly up to, and all of the equipment was in sand, something he had learned to despise. Still, he deeply appreciated how Scourge was nice enough to make it so that he had it all to himself, and tried to enjoy it for what it was. He mostly used the slides, though, as pushing the swing a little and seeing it go back towards him made him too nervous of the consequences of the swing hitting a person to even consider asking Scourge to push him in it. Besides, he couldn't imagine it being fun to just push someone on a swing over and over. He wanted Scourge to enjoy himself, too, and he wouldn't be able to enjoy his time there knowing Scourge wasn't happy. 

After nearly a half an hour, they left the playground to return home, as it was getting close to dinner, and they preferred not to miss enjoying the dinner the servants at their mansion made for the house. After finishing a delicious meal of mashed potatoes, broccoli and steak, with Scourge giving him all of his broccoli, Miles was given some more ice cream with chocolate sauce as dessert, and while he didn't like ice cream headaches, it was at least tasty enough to be a nice treat as usual. The first thing they did after breakfast the next morning was go to a forest to find a long branch for a staff for Miles, giving him a weapon at last. He wouldn't be able to spindash while holding it, but it didn't seem to matter to him.

Scourge taught Miles a lot of common knowledge that he missed out on from not going to school, having proper social experience, or even watching the right TV shows. He felt like the wiser one compared to his naïve and inexperienced friend, and that only made their age difference feel more obvious, as despite being the one who wasn't the genius of the duo, Scourge was still the older and wiser one. He tended to read words on signs and whatnot out loud to subtly teach Miles how they were pronounced, and he would often have to correct Miles when he struggled to pronounce certain words, usually words that had two vowels right beside each other in them, and he had to resist chuckling at how cute he thought it was, even if it was from a tragic lack of education. It was strangely satisfying, casually correcting his mispronunciations and teaching him everything he knew. He felt like a parent.


	4. The Cracks in the Seams

Scourge not only wanted to get Miles comfortable with the city – which was what the tour of it was for – but he wanted to get Miles to start feeling like he was finally overcoming his past by getting revenge on the people of the world. He wanted him to join in on his favorite past-time, of course, but he also wanted him to feel like he had a safe outlet for his stress, and finally fully register that the tables had turned and now he was the one on top. But convincing him to take it all out on random people on the streets was a lot harder than he thought it was going to be. He thought that reminding him of how mean people were to him in the past would be all it would take to rile him up enough, but all it did was make him sad.

He didn't want to have to miss out on the thrills and satisfaction of winning fights because he'd have to worry about Miles being targeted while he was busy, and attacked because he was unwilling to attack first, and at the very least, telling him about that concern was enough to get him to understand. He had been practicing attacks on nothing but unmoving scarecrows set up in his backyard, and he needed to apply that to the real thing to learn how to win a fight, to get the first hit on people who would inevitably hurt him so that he would be able to win. It was all in the interest of getting him stronger.

But he still showed hesitation. Scourge couldn't even get him to agree to knock down a random man on the street and demand his wallet, one of the most petty crimes in his opinion. Needless to say, he found that embarrassing, as Miles had awkwardly went over to the man only to run back into the alley frightened of him, and Scourge felt the need to show him how to do it right. He knocked the man down with a homing-attack and said standing on his chest, " You, bozo! You got any cash on you or what?! "

The man was a Moebian of the jackal race, and he yelped at what happened saying, " Sonic the Hedgehog! Don't hurt me! Take my money! " letting Scourge take the paper bills out of his wallet looking uncharacteristically annoyed rather than smirking during the experience. This was something the man didn't fail to notice, and Scourge in his bad mood had to specifically tell him, " What'dya doin' standin' here?! Get lost! " to get him to leave. All the while, Miles stared at the sight uncomfortable, hoping he wouldn't be seen himself.

Scourge put the money in his leather jacket pocket as he left, and didn't look directly at Miles at first as he tried to make a compromise with him. Normally, Miles was loyal enough to do literally whatever he wanted, so running into that level of hesitation from him was frustrating, to say the least, and he took deep breaths in and out, trying his best to not get him upset by losing his temper. Miles could tell how he was feeling, and wished that it could only be some other way.

" Alright, looks like we gotta start small. What people do you think in this city deserve to suffer the most? " he asked Miles, trying and failing to hide his exasperation with him. " Mean people, " the kid answered unhappily, not understanding what he meant by the figure of speech. Scourge replied, " Well, that man you chickened out of mugging was mean just like your bullies, and that didn't help motivate you, so clearly you want some different targets. "

Miles, feeling pressured to give him an answer, said, " I-I think the people should do something to really get it coming first. And if what you said about city folk was true, then just waiting for someone willing to insult me to my face means we'll be waiting forever. So if they're too afraid to provoke us, maybe we need to look for the people that aren't necessarily being mean to us, but to other people. Not that I care what bullies do to other bullies, I'm just saying I'd feel a lot better if I knew for an absolute fact that our target was an awful person who had it coming. " Scourge, getting an idea, asked him still feeling a bit frustrated with him, " You mean like a criminal or something? "

Seeing the annoyed look in his eyes, Miles said nervously, " Not you! Someone else! A criminal who isn't nice to me, who wouldn't give me a chance. Those are the people that deserve to suffer the most, but you've proven that you're the exception. You're not like those people! You're a good person when it counts… " Scourge looked at him stunned and conflicted once again, and then looked to the left and right of him hoping nobody heard that.

" That's a compliment. What I mean is, well, I had a lot of bad experiences with teenagers wearing black jackets. I heard them calling each other a gang sometimes, and they were the people aside from the cops who were the most willing to hunt me down and, beat me! I-It got to the point where the people of the island would hire them to look for me and supply them with weapons, and whatever they asked for, they got… " Miles was full of sadness and dread by the third sentence, getting increasingly more scared just at talking about it, and had to take a deep breath to calm himself down, remembering what Scourge advised him to do. Getting angry, he continued with a passionate desire for justice against his oppressors,

" Those are the kind of people I hate! Those are the people that should pay! The ones who love to hurt people to the point where they jump at the opportunity to do it to me! A-At least when I wasn't already in the process of taking stuff from their homes, the rest of the island dwellers didn't actively hunt me down. The worst they did was insult me when I was too far away from their frying pans and other weapons. So while the regular law-following people were certainly awful, they were the best of the worst. They're not who I want to hurt. I-I mean, they're not the people I want to focus on right now! The regular people of the world are just as discriminatory as criminals, but at least they're subtle. I wanna prove to them that I'm not to be messed with, just like you said, but maybe the best way to start with that is to find the worst of this city and make an example out of them. "

Scourge nodded, realizing that Miles' desire to be a vigilante could be the only thing that would get him to do what he wanted. It would be much easier of a transition getting Miles to fight criminals with him than regular civilians who hadn't done anything to him. As a result, the general target of Scourge's law-breaking soon switched to the random criminals he found in the inner city and alleys. That wasn't to say he stopped causing trouble to regular people, cutting in line and forcing people out of arcades for Miles' sake, but if he were to get Miles used to starting fights and breaking the law with him, it would be a lot easier getting him to start if he felt justified in it. He'd be able to make up excuses for fighting regular people later, just like his big brother did. But for the first year of their friendship, Miles only targeted criminals.

So he spent a lot of his daily runs through the city with Scourge doing just that, fighting criminals in alleys, taking full advantage of the sheer force at which he attacked with his super speed and how Scourge was always right there by his side. The only thing Miles really complained about when it came to that, was the smell of the dumpsters and trash cans that were often in the alleys that they had to run through looking for criminals, and fortunately, Scourge didn't figure out exactly why he complained.

On the fifth day that Miles ran through the city with Scourge, Miles gasped startled when they heard a gunfire sound in one of the alleys. Scourge immediately ran into it at sonic speed and homing-attacked the one with the gun in a blue blur, knocking him down with a thud, and fortunately for the already traumatized Miles, the gunfire had purely happened because the mugger had fired a shot into the air to scare the civilian he was robbing. As soon as Scourge knocked him down, Miles rushed in and slammed the mugger with his staff repeatedly, shouting angrily to him, " Take this, you bully! "

Kicking the mugger's dropped gun far away from him, Scourge could tell from Miles' shrunken pupils and trembling that he was still terrified from the sound of the gunfire, despite his vicious attacking and angry expression hiding it, and even if that hadn't been a clear enough sign, his use of the word bully gave it away. The civilian they rescued from the mugging stared at the sight in a mixture of anxiety, confusion, and appreciation, and quickly decided to run away while he still had his money, not trusting Scourge to not rob him himself after he was done showing his dominance over the mugger.

When they had attacked him enough that he seemed unwilling to get back up, but was still very much conscious and terrified, Scourge said smugly, " Send a message to all the other scum like you. There's only one lawbreaker worth anything around these parts and it's me! I'll be takin' your money, thank you, " taking his wallet out of his jacket. Miles added bitterly, " I think that'll be the best punishment, considering you were about to do the same thing! " and then smiled, feeling like a hero for what he had done to the robber.

After the two of them ran at almost the speed of sound out of the alley and stopped at the city park, Scourge said happily, " You did great, Miles! I'm so proud of you! " ruffled his hair and gave him a quick kiss on the forehead again much to his delight. Scourge exclaimed in excitement, " I didn't even have to do anything to make ya join in! You just came in swinging that staff of yours and being a badass! And what you said to him, actually talking to our target? Perfect! You're really getting the hang of this. We're gonna make the best duo ever! "

Miles giggled happily at that, and gladly ran after him as they continued their run through the city. While hearing gunfire again was terrifying for him, the sheer pride he felt in taking down a mugger right before he could commit the crime made him feel so great, that it was as if nearly all of his reservations against fighting criminals with Scourge were pointless. It was that moment that taught him that he was doing the right thing. It was satisfying getting all of that pent-up aggression out on someone he knew for a fact deserved it, instead of bottling it all up out of fear while feeling increasingly helpless and unhappy. He would still rather just stand there and let Scourge be the one cutting in line and taking money from more innocent-looking people, but for criminals, he was happy to be the one giving them what they deserved with Scourge.

While he would never stop being intimidated by strangers and being on edge from being in large crowds, Miles was able to get used to running through the city with Scourge, and with him stealing and winning fights with criminals all over the city, Miles quickly gained a reputation as not only a two-tailed fox, but as Scourge the Hedgehog's most loyal and threatening associate, out for revenge against a world that persecuted him for his second tail. Civilians still looked at him in confusion and surprise at him having a second tail, but as long as he was with Scourge, they were too intimidated to harass him.

A month of spending every day with Miles allowed Scourge to learn a lot about him from observing even the most obscure of quirks about his behavior. He noticed that the kid never liked to have his back to anyone, possibly out of the anxiety that they'd yank his tails if he did that. Whenever he did have to have his back to someone, like after cutting in line with him, he always moved his tails to almost in front of his body to prevent the person behind him from grabbing them. It was an instinctive response that Scourge eventually started noticing as he wondered why he was doing it and acting nervous for no good reason.

Getting more comfortable around Miles caused Scourge to be more reckless, forgetting how sensitive Miles really was, and that led to more instances where he would get him frustrated or upset. Interrupting Miles got him depressed and quiet at believing that talking was pointless, the kid was becoming increasingly more likely to get annoyed at being called kiddo and treated differently for being young, and one time, Scourge playfully pinched him to get him to stop being absorbed in a past memory and get his attention, only to startle him severely as a result. For the most part, though, he was just as friendly and considerate to him as he was before, and his insensitivity wasn't anything he didn't show trying to lightheartedly tease and poke fun at him when they first knew each other.

On the way to the first alley they'd run through, over a month after they met, Miles gasped at hearing the sound of a car engine backfiring and was thrown into a panic. The memory of the last time he had heard gunfire on his island came back so clear that it was as if he could actually hear the voice of the person who had fired it right across from him. " Freak! Hold still! " he heard in his panicked mind, and as a result, while he was already running to keep up with Scourge on the sidewalk, the fear of getting shot caused him to immediately want to hide.

As soon as they found the alley, Miles ran ahead of Scourge and hid himself in the dumpster, much to Scourge's shock and confusion. He had heard the sound as well, but he had hoped that it sounded too different from gunfire for him to panic, or that it had been long enough that he would stop reacting so severely to what he started calling his reminders. " Miles, it's okay! Come on, get outta there, it must stink! " he said opening the dumpster, trying to ignore the frightened gasp from Miles at him doing so.

Hearing that he was being called by his actual name stunned him back into the present for the most part, and despite his trembling, he forced a sheepish smile as he flew out of the dumpster and back onto the cement floor of the alley. Humiliated, he said quietly, " Thanks. I hate it in there… I just wanted a safe place to hide. " His head was hung low, and his eyes were downcast and miserable. Feeling terrible for him, and thankful that no one seemed to be around to witness the scene, Scourge asked him, " Were these what you usually had to hide in? "

Starting out depressed and becoming more passionately angry, Miles explained, " No, my island had so little people, it only had one of these big things, and I got thrown inside of it for trying to drink from the park fountain! Occasionally I'd hide in trash cans and be able to avoid getting hurt, but most of the time they either had too much stuff in them to fit me, or I'd get attacked and thrown into them instead, and then the contents of them would be dumped on me by those stupid teenagers! I hate those things!... Even the food in them is terrible. Just made me sick. "

Scourge knew he shouldn't be surprised anymore whenever he was given new information about how Miles had been treated in the past, but for some reason, he still had enough compassion in him for the child to still be horrified and stunned every time he heard about it. It just didn't seem fair that Miles was treated like that consistently his whole life, without even a single person feeling sorry for him enough to start helping him. " You'd think they would've gotten used to the second tail… " he muttered facing the wall to the left of him with his fist clenched.

Miles heard him, and continued to feel just as melancholic as before, saying, " No one will ever be used to it. " Scourge immediately replied, " I am. I love it! Used to it is an understatement. Don't listen to those jealous idiots, you're gifted, Miles. You're special! " and put his arm around him to hold him close. " Thanks, " Miles said with a small smile, thinking, " But that's only you… Everyone else knows I'm just a freak. "

Seeing that Miles was still depressed, Scourge tried to cheer him up some more. " Hey, you know, there's a photographer at the mall today! How's about I bring ya there to celebrate a month of our friendship? " he said cheerfully, with his smile a bit forced from pity. " Sure, okay, " Miles replied reluctantly, not knowing what a photographer was but not feeling like making himself sound like an idiot again by asking. With that, the two of them started running through the streets to the mall.

When they got there, Miles gasped at seeing a flash of light come from the small black box the photographer was holding in front of a couple. Scourge, misinterpreting the source of his anxiety, said to the photographer while giving him his stolen money, " Don't use the flash on it for us, " with an annoyed expression. Noticing Miles hadn't followed him up to the photographer yet, he reassured him, " It's okay, it's fine. You won't see that flash of light anymore. Now come here! Let's get a family photo! "

Miles nervously smiled until the final sentence, where he was caught between being really happy and excited and being nervous again at his picture being taken. Not wanting him to waste his money, Miles went up to Scourge obediently, and his nervous expression became a more happy one when Scourge ruffled his hair and put his arm around him holding him close to his side. The photographer told them to, " Say cheese! " and since Scourge did it, Miles followed suit despite not understanding why he should.

" There you go, " the photographer said giving them the resulting photograph, which had them in the same poses as before smiling happily, even if Miles was clearly trying to hide one of his tails behind his back. With that, Scourge handed it to Miles saying, " Here ya go, a picture of us for posterity! You can keep it in your pocket and treasure it! " Miles very quickly did just that, putting the picture in his leather jacket pocket and zipping the pocket up trying to avoid looking at the picture of himself. Scourge looked concerned at his reaction, wondering if his hatred of seeing himself ran deep enough to ruin photographs for him.

Trying to distract him, Miles cheerfully pointed out, " Posterity, huh? " Scourge, also wanting to lighten things up, replied, " Yep, I learned it from you! I keep tellin' ya, you're getting a better vocabulary every day thanks to that dictionary I found ya. And you're making me smarter because of it! Keep it up! " and gave him a thumbs up. Walking away from the photographer with him, Miles found it amusing and charming that Scourge, a wannabe gangster and proud criminal, was so proud of using big words just for the sake of it, and wondered if it showed that he really did respect him. At the same time, though, hearing that humbled him once again, as he admitted sheepishly,

" Well, I don't always remember every word I read about. I didn't even know what a photographer was until you brought me to that guy. Although that worked out for us, I would've irrationally said no otherwise. " Looking worried, Scourge said, " Don't tell me you've had bad experiences with photographers too! " Miles replied unhappily, " Okay. " " I didn't mean literally! " Scourge said in annoyance, which only made Miles feel worse.

Trying to pretend he wasn't offended, Miles reluctantly explained, " People on my island tried to take pictures of me to humiliate me, and worst of all, to spread the word of what I looked like so nobody would make the mistake of helping me, even if they didn't live on the island. They told me why they were doing it before doing it, so it's no wonder I don't like getting my picture taken. "

Scourge wished there was something he could to make him completely get over that fear, and all of his irrational fears, but all he could do was compassionately rub his shoulder and say, " Well, that's all over now, " despite knowing Miles' mind wouldn't register that as true. After that, they quickly resumed their run through the city, showing dominance over the various criminals around.

Another month passed, and on their way to their first alley of the day a morning after a storm, Scourge ran across a puddle on the sidewalk once again, but this time, the splash of water his shoes created reached high up enough to splash in Miles' eyes behind him. Most of the time, Miles was able to avoid such a scenario by wearing sunglasses and running beside Scourge rather than behind him, but this time, he wasn't so lucky, and the water in his eyes immediately made him close them out of an inability to see ahead of him. Not wanting to blindly run into anything, like the back of Scourge's spines, or a car, he stopped in his tracks to rub his eyes frantically in an instinctive reaction, forgetting that he was trying to keep up with someone.

Fortunately, Scourge quickly noticed a lack of the sound of footsteps behind him and asked the question, " You okay, Miles? " wondering if he had started flying behind him. Getting no answer caused him to immediately run back at the speed of sound to where he last heard Miles, where he saw him drying his eyes with his gloves. Jumping to the conclusion that he was crying and wondering what could've possibly caused it this time, he hugged him, getting his attention immediately.

" Thank you… I-I'm not crying, Sonic. A puddle splashed water in my eyes, and I couldn't see for a little bit. It's dangerous to run blind, " Miles said sadly after reluctantly letting go of him when the hug ended. " Do you have a lot of experience with that? I mean, you can't always stop running just because a puddle splashed ya, and it was pretty rainy back on your island, " Scourge asked unhappily.

" Sometimes it was a puddle, sometimes it was sand, sometimes it was, my own tears… " Miles replied, whispering the last few words full of shame and disrespect for himself. There was a brief silence as Scourge let it all sink in, before Miles continued sadly,

" It always sucked getting something in my eyes, especially when I was running! I had to constantly do zig zags and run in unpredictable routes to try to throw people off my trail, and in a forest full of trees for me to run into and tree trunks to trip on and bushes to get caught in, that was hard enough on its own even with being able to see. Sure, I could leave them all in the dust at first, but they'd never stop chasing me, they'd call up people in the direction I was headed warning them to be ready for me, and I would get tired eventually and need to hide… I'm sorry I brought up such a depressing topic again. I promised myself I'd stop talking about the past. You already know enough. "

Once again, Scourge could do nothing but reassure him. " It's okay now, little bro. You'll never have to set foot on that island again, " to briefly cheer him up for the time being. " Come on, let's go to the arcade, have some fun! " he added happily to his delight. " Sure! You know, Sonic, the very concept of a video game never ceases to amaze me. Being able to interact with a colorful fictional world in a way that's satisfying, with music and visuals nothing like that of the real world, it's perfect escapism! "

Scourge commented as they started walking to the arcade, " You wouldn't like modern games, then. They like to have realistic graphics that look dark and gritty, all black and brown. Oh, by graphics, I mean the way they look. " Wanting to not look ignorant, Miles nodded despite not knowing what he meant by modern games, as from his perspective, since arcade machines still existed in the present time, arcade games were modern to him.

" Really ought to thank the arcade's owner for building all of those amazing machines, " Miles commented cheerfully. Scourge chuckled at the end of it finding his wrong assumption cute, and said, " You think he programmed all those games himself? Nah, he just gets them from someone who did. I can't imagine he'd have the time, let alone the ability when all he's capable of doing is taking money from behind a counter all day. "

Miles looked embarrassed and sheepishly replied, " Oh. Should've known, " with nervous body language. Scourge playfully teased him, " What, did ya think that was the case for all stores, that every little tiny thing in a store was personally crafted by the store owner himself and all of the fruits and veggies were grown and harvested by him, and every little fish was personally fished up by the store owner himself? " There was a brief silence before Miles admitted, " Maybe… " having not thought about it all the way through.

Scourge chuckled and exclaimed, " Aw, that's adorable! " and ruffled his hair, saying lovingly, " Love ya, little bro. Never change. " Miles laughed nervously, torn between being blissfully appreciative of being loved and feeling frustration at the condescending treatment. He couldn't help being inexperienced.

Needless to say, Scourge ever since they first went in there had made it a monthly routine to go to the arcade that Miles liked so much, viewing it as the one fun part of the city. They would've gone every day, but Miles to Scourge's annoyance was opposed to that, explaining, " W-Well, the people going to the arcade can only have so much money, so what if they get to a point where they won't be able to show up there for you to take their money anymore? What if they give up and stop showing up there entirely because we show up too much? What if the arcade's owner stops getting people showing up entirely and gives up on the arcade? That's also why we shouldn't be too predictable and consistent, because if they learn to predict when we're going to show up, then we're gonna end up going there to an empty arcade with no coins for us to use. So we can't go there every day and expect it to always work out. It's just impractical. "

Scourge had no choice but to reluctantly nod in agreement, understanding that Miles had a very strong point, even if he was ultimately just telling him he couldn't do too much stealing or there would be consequences for him, just like his parents used to nag him.

After leaving the arcade together, they ran through the city for a while until the sight and smell of a burning building stopped them in their tracks. In front of them was a house on fire, and there were various firemen using hoses to put out the flames. Seeing the familiar sight made Miles stare at it with an expression of dread and horror, and the clouds just above the house started to increase in size rapidly and darken within the span of a couple seconds before pouring torrential rains onto the flames, as if in an effort to put them out. Of course, everyone noticed how unusual this was, having torrential downpours concentrated into such a tiny area, but Miles being in the city for so long had at least gotten people to accept it as a regular occurrence, if a strange one with no real explanation.

Seeing that Miles was trembling uncontrollably with his pupils shrunken at the sight and smell of the burning house, and one he had no real attachment to at that, Scourge sighed unhappily. He wanted to just grab his hand and pull him behind him as he ran away from the house with him, but that might only get him even more panicked at being pulled by someone so suddenly. He asked one of the fireman awkwardly, " S-So, why's it on fire? " The fireman looked at him surprised, knowing how uncharacteristic someone of his reputation was acting, and quickly answered as he continuing spraying the hose, " Lightning strike. "

Unfortunately, this was the worst possible response he could give for Miles, and the fact that he was a fireman looking in his general direction didn't help, as he started to irrationally fear that he would blame him for it and turn his hose on him. He exclaimed hysterically, " Lightning?! NO! Don't look at me! I-I didn't want this to happen, it's awful! PLEASE! " and impulsively started running away in a yellow blur, certain that the fireman's next action would be to try to drown him with his hose. All Scourge could do in response was run after him and eventually catch up with him, incredibly concerned and worried about him, while at the same time, he was frustrated that the scene he caused gave the people of the city even more reason to call Miles a coward.

Catching up to him and saying, " Miles, relax, " in a reassuring tone mixed with panic only gave him a startled jolt, and he impulsively turned to the right into the thankfully empty city park and continued running away, saying, " No, no! Everyone's gonna blame me for this! Everyone's gonna try to kill me again! We gotta move, we gotta change towns! "

Seeing that he had no other choice, Scourge scooped him up into his arms carrying him as he ran beside him and shushed him as he slowed to a halt with him, trying his best to get him back to his senses. Miles was surprised and caught off guard by that bold action, but being caressed reassuringly helped to calm him down to merely whimpering as he was being carefully sat down on the park grass and hugged.

Scourge explained to him with a smile as Miles returned the hug, " Relax, everything will be fine… Remember, Miles, you live with me, and no one's gonna cross me, and considering my father has an insane amount of power over the world, no one's gonna force him to move either. Hell, even if people do blame you, that'll just add to your menacing factor and make people less likely to wanna mess with ya, especially since you're with me… Things are different in the city, Miles. In your small town, everybody knew each other, so everyone was willing to work together against you, but in the city, everyone's a stranger. They're not gonna all rise up in an angry mob with people they don't even trust… And even if they do, I'll just run around 'em in a circle and catch 'em all in a tornado to humiliate 'em. With my super speed, I'm basically invincible compared to those slowpokes! So don't worry, Miles. We'll be just fine… "

After hearing a familiar sniffle, he realized Miles had started crying, and the kid said sadly, " It isn't just people hurting me that I'm worried about... I've always been blamed for lightning strikes, and they only started happening in a huge quantity in one area when I was born, when I was brought to the island, so what if people are right? What if that lightning strike only happened because of me? I didn't wanna be responsible for some random person's house getting burned down! But I couldn't keep it from happening. What if the same thing happens to our house?! Just like with the orphanage! It got struck when I was still living in it and I was barely able to escape! There were people in there and… "

It was hard to argue with Miles' reasoning, and Scourge couldn't help but be worried at hearing it, but ultimately, it was his job to comfort him, not tell him he was right all the time. Scourge reassured him successfully, " Well, that orphanage was full of people who hated ya. Now that you live with me, maybe that lightning won't wanna bother me because you like me so much. How about that? And besides, maybe the lightning that hit that house you saw, was going to happen anyways even if you weren't in this city. I know you didn't want that to happen. So if you really aren't the type to like setting things on fire – n-not that I've ever done it – then I can't imagine you telling lightning to do that, even subconsciously. Assuming that ridiculous superstition that you can control it by accident is even true! Those backwoods islanders might have just brainwashed you into believing it. I don't see how having a second tail would give you the ability to control the weather. It'd be cool as hell, but let's not get our hopes up. "

Miles smiled a little at hearing him say the word subconsciously, always finding it charming when a criminal like him used a big word like that for the sake of it, and feeling like he might be a positive influence on him in intelligence alone. Of course, when Scourge said he never set anything on fire, he was lying through his teeth, but Miles by that point blindly trusted him enough to believe him. After all, he did say to him, " You're a good person when it counts, " a sentence that still haunted Scourge with his supposed badass rebellious lawbreaker persona.

Finally feeling better, Miles looked him in the eyes and asked, " You really think controlling the weather would be cool? " full of hope. " Of course it would! It'd just be another reason you'd be awesome! " Scourge replied encouragingly.

After some brief consideration, he stopped smiling and let him go while saying, " But again, let's not get our hopes up. And even if you could do that, heh, let's not have you stealing my thunder. " Confused, Miles said, " You mean you like hearing thunder too? Why? " It took a couple seconds of Scourge staring at him in confusion for him to realize he had taken it literally, and shook his head before correcting him,

" No, no, it's just a figure of speech. Wh-What I mean to say is, I don't want 'cha upstagin' me, ya know? I'm the one who's the most badass criminal alive! That's not to say I don't want ya to get stronger and better, and more capable of defending yourself without me. I'm just saying, I don't want people to be too afraid of you, you know? "

Miles was silent for a second before cautiously replying, " I understand… " Unfortunately, the annoyance he had from that little speech slipped out in his tone, and Scourge caught it. " It's no big deal, is it? " he asked nervously, not wanting to get into an argument with his only friend.

" I, uh, no. I understand! Being a feared criminal is extremely important to you, and since you care about it so much more than me, it's only right that you should be the one with all the spotlight from that. Besides, spotlight isn't something I appreciate myself, so even pretending I could control the weather and stuff, it'd just give people even more reason to pay attention to me. One of the best things about having a friend is that you draw attention away from me. People can't focus on my second tail for too long when they have to talk to you the minute they look at it! S-So yeah, I understand, Sonic, " Miles explained awkwardly, and thought to himself, " It's an ego thing, " finishing the sentence where Scourge couldn't hear him.

For most of the time he knew Scourge, he found his unwavering confidence in himself inspiring and charming, something he tried to live vicariously through and support, something he felt was the source of Scourge's strength and allowed him to achieve things he'd be too scared to otherwise. But occasionally, Scourge's ego could get a bit too much even for him, particularly in situations where his brother was reminding him of how he should keep to his place and not upstage him from the limelight. He would always attack second, not first, and speak after he did. He wasn't the one in charge, and sometimes he was frustrated with himself for even questioning that, since logically, Scourge should be in charge, being the one who was not only older than him, but well-versed in common knowledge at a much greater extent than him, making him both older and wiser. Miles wouldn't even be able to spell his own name if it weren't for him.

Of course he should be the one telling him what to do, because he was the only one who was very likely to be right about what he should do. Miles didn't always agree with his ideas, for example, not thinking that spray-painting the orphanage was a good decision, but he would always end up at least feeling half satisfied with it in the end, and consiering he never felt 100% of any emotion anyways, how was he supposed to know if that satisfaction was hollow? He didn't even feel 100% happy when shown affection because a part of him didn't think he deserved it. Did that mean he didn't actually like being shown love? Of course not. He couldn't get enough of it. With Miles being conflicted with basically every emotion he felt, always feeling at least two emotions at once, it was easy for him to get confused, and not know what he wanted or believed.

" A-After all, why should I upstage you? You're the older and wiser one. You're the one in charge, and you should be! You never doubt yourself and the decisions you make, while I do, and if you're the leader of this duo, then it's better to have the leader be a confident one. Meanwhile, I'm perfectly happy just being your ' trusty sidekick. ' I-I used that word right, right? Heard some kids saying it near the arcade, and… " Miles said to Scourge earnestly, despite some hesitation deep down that he mostly looked down on.

" Don't worry, you used it right, sidekick. It's just kinda weird since it's applied to heroes, not criminals, " Scourge said with a smile that was slightly forced, as he was nervous from what he said at remembering that even he doubted himself sometimes. From the very first day he met Miles, he had doubts over whether he'd be able to keep a friend so sensitive and troubled and whether he should even try taking on that responsibility, but he would never tell Miles that. He'd only overreact.

Miles replied, " Uh, okay. Guess I won't say it often, then, " confused, as he usually tried to convince himself that by limiting his targets to criminals, he was a hero, albeit a non-traditional one. His only idea of a hero for his entire life was a person that would save his life and show compassion to him in spite of his mutation, and after meeting Scourge, perhaps even someone who liked his second tail. His definition of hero couldn't get any more simplistic than that and the bar wasn't very high, and since it was such a broad definition, applying to anyone who wasn't discriminatory against someone different-looking to the point of wanting them dead, applying it to Scourge was easy for him.

That wasn't to say he thought criminals were the true heroes for rebelling against the rules of society. He suffered from criminals in the form of the teenaged gang members hired to bully him and hunt him down, so he still saw most criminals as villainous, but Scourge taught him to view his friends as exceptions to the rule, and he had never met any policeman or even fireman who was nice to him even though they were considered heroes in society. Doctors and nurses he was considering as heroes now that he met some that actually wanted to help him, but other than that, his morality had been twisted, viewing himself and Scourge as some of the only truly good people in the world.

" Well, that's good, kiddo. Good to see you know your place! Again, no offense. Now come on, let's find some more people to show who's boss! People are learning to respect your authority already! " Scourge said ruffling his hair at the first sentence. For the first time, Miles was irritated at him for talking to him like that, and Scourge noticed, and awkwardly had to ignore it as they started running down the sidewalk together. Even being called kiddo by him had lost its novelty as an affectionate nickname as the continued reminder of how it was used as an excuse to subordinate him became increasingly more frustrating for him, and he hated himself for it.

A part of him appreciated following all of Scourge's orders because he didn't have to think, he didn't have to be overwhelmed with uncertainty trying to figure out what the right way to live life was in a world of people that didn't grant him all the opportunities he'd want anyways.

But another part of him saw Scourge treating him like a child and making him do everything he said as restrictive and even condescending, and felt like he wasn't truly free just because he left his oppressive island, because he had to do everything Scourge said, even if he was opposed to it. Just last week, Scourge tried to get him to mug a regular person again, and while he didn't punish him for refusing per se, his annoyance with him and embarrassment was punishment enough. Not enough to discourage him from doing it again, but it was still a grim reminder that he wasn't truly free.

Did Scourge not really respect him? Did he not respect the idea of Miles being his own person, and having an identity and set of interests and opinions separate from him? Scourge always got mildly annoyed whenever he expressed morality and hesitated to break certain laws just for the sake of it, always leaving it up to him to terrorize regular people in spite of his attempt to get them to take turns. He didn't seem to like the idea that he loved playing music and arcade games and reseaching the weather much more than breaking the law and being seen as a feared criminal. It was as if regardless of how much he didn't want to, Scourge looked down on him being different from him, like a bully, and Miles was frustrated that he even dared to feel that way about Scourge since he was still very grateful and appreciative of even having a friend at all.

The thought of being " free " from Scourge terrified him, and drove him to tears just thinking about going back to being all alone. He didn't even want to be the one in charge because pretending Scourge even would like to follow his idea of only ever victimizing criminals, he didn't trust himself to not screw up with that authority, especially with his lack of experience and practical knowledge. He could name every type of cloud in the sky, but that kind of science trivia didn't help his day to day life, so he often wondered whether being a genius meant anything at all.

The part of him that was still blindly devoted and grateful just for the sake of it hated the part of him that was " immaturely " getting resentful of being treated like the child that he was, the ignorant uneducated naïve kid that he was, and he worried that if that resentment grew too much, it could cost him the only friend he had. There were a few times when that gave him nightmares, about something other than his past for once. He was determined to not show anything more than very brief frustration and annoyance with him, refusing to ever get into an argument, and instead used the anger and resentment in a " productive " way by fighting criminals even harder than before, something that only made Scourge proud of him and compliment him for " really getting into it. " Was that really someone he wanted to become?

Unfortunately, Scourge had his fair share of frustrations with the friendship, too. He just watched him have a panic attack in front of him, the worst one he ever had, and could barely get him to feel better, and even after he did, he knew full well that he might still end up feeling that way again. It was getting frustrating how he was completely powerless to fix the problem permanently. Even two months after Miles was on that island, traumatic memories would keep resurfacing and he'd keep being reminded of the past by even the slightest of things, and it looked like a situation that couldn't get better.

At the very least, he could take comfort in the fact that he made Miles' present situation a lot happier, even if his mind couldn't catch up to it, but sometimes all of his efforts to help him felt pointless knowing that he would always be suffering from his bullies' mistreatment long after leaving their island. There was no denying anymore that there might be something seriously wrong with him, and he'd have to accept that as part of who his friend is, as depressing as that would be.

He couldn't even express the sheer frustration and powerlessness properly because if he told Miles about it, the kid would only jump to the conclusion that he'd eventually get sick of such an emotionally draining friendship and give up on it. Scourge would rather believe he was too stubborn to do such a thing and would always stick with him, but Miles even months after meeting him thought he was extremely lucky he was even bothering with him at all, and often wondered why he put up with him.

So the only way he could even remotely express that frustration and feel more powerful than he was, was to keep beating up criminals in the alleys, just like he always did. Miles at least had gotten used to it, and even seemed to feel good about doing it justifying it to himself, which Scourge viewed as a huge step from just preferring to lock himself away in his house like a hermit and avoiding trying to interact with anyone but him.

But sometimes he felt that he would give all of that away in an instant to just get rid of the post-traumatic stress Miles kept showing he had. He was at the point where he secretly bought a book on psychological disorders at the book store just so he could learn more about how Miles thought. He had to read it at night with a dictionary on hand because of all the big words. At the very least, he finished reading it understanding it fairly well, and was proud of himself for that, but he wouldn't be bragging about it any time soon.

Just like he had worried at their first meeting, Miles was an overwhelming friend to have considering just how much he had suffered in the past, and it was an emotional rollercoaster having to comfort him so many times knowing he would only feel the same way again. The only up-side, which he tried to focus on the best he could, was that Miles appreciated affection from him so deeply from a lack of getting it in life. His comfort with him had even caused him to get gutsy enough to start showing affection to him himself recently, hugging him when no one was there to witness it. Considering Scourge himself had never gotten any affection to his recollection until he met Miles, with his parents being neglectful and all, having a friend who desperately craved affection and felt it was only right to show it to him in return seemed like the perfect match. It was a shame it came with so many downsides.

He only wished there was a way he could have that much affection without having to deal with a person's numerous fears and insecurities, and every so often, he internally scolded himself for seeming to not appreciate his only friend as much as he should. He was being disloyal just from thinking about that.

An ideal friendship could only stay ideal for so long, and the longer they knew each other, the harder it became to be unaware of the problems and concerns they each had about it. Miles wasn't entirely okay with the power dynamic of their friendship and how he wasn't fully respected for who he really was, and Scourge wished Miles wasn't so overwhelming to deal with at times.

They still appreciated each other, of course, with Scourge viewing Miles as otherwise the perfect friend from just how blindly loyal, devoted, compassionate and polite he was, and Miles loving how he had someone essentially raising him and being there for him mutation or not, someone who believed in him. No friendship could be perfect. At the very least, they appreciated the fact that they had one. It wouldn't be until they would meet a certain princess that cracks would start to form in the seams.

For now, Scourge was devoted to being as good a friend to Miles as possible, spending nearly every waking hour of the day with him, refusing to let his natural impatience, self-centeredness and recklessness ruin the only positive relationship with a person he ever had. And because Scourge was so loyal, so devoted to making him feel like he was loved, Miles was even more loyal to repay him. He felt like he earned it, even if it wasn't perfect.

A couple times over the year that they were each other's only friends, Miles became sick with a fever and had to stay in bed for almost the entirety of the day, and Scourge stayed home with him to reassure him, bringing him all of his meals and letting him sleep with his head on his chest in bed as they watched TV together. He didn't like having to stay at home, but at least he felt like he was needed and accomplishing something good for someone he cared about. On the rare occasion that Scourge was sick, Miles was happy to help.

Scourge not only wanted to get Miles comfortable with the city – which was what the tour of it was for – but he wanted to get Miles to start feeling like he was finally overcoming his past by getting revenge on the people of the world. He wanted him to join in on his favorite past-time, of course, but he also wanted him to feel like he had a safe outlet for his stress, and finally fully register that the tables had turned and now he was the one on top. But convincing him to take it all out on random people on the streets was a lot harder than he thought it was going to be. He thought that reminding him of how mean people were to him in the past would be all it would take to rile him up enough, but all it did was make him sad.

He didn't want to have to miss out on the thrills and satisfaction of winning fights because he'd have to worry about Miles being targeted while he was busy, and attacked because he was unwilling to attack first, and at the very least, telling him about that concern was enough to get him to understand. He had been practicing attacks on nothing but unmoving scarecrows set up in his backyard, and he needed to apply that to the real thing to learn how to win a fight, to get the first hit on people who would inevitably hurt him so that he would be able to win. It was all in the interest of getting him stronger.

But he still showed hesitation. Scourge couldn't even get him to agree to knock down a random man on the street and demand his wallet, one of the most petty crimes in his opinion. Needless to say, he found that embarrassing, as Miles had awkwardly went over to the man only to run back into the alley frightened of him, and Scourge felt the need to show him how to do it right. He knocked the man down with a homing-attack and said standing on his chest, " You, bozo! You got any cash on you or what?! "

The man was a Moebian of the jackal race, and he yelped at what happened saying, " Sonic the Hedgehog! Don't hurt me! Take my money! " letting Scourge take the paper bills out of his wallet looking uncharacteristically annoyed rather than smirking during the experience. This was something the man didn't fail to notice, and Scourge in his bad mood had to specifically tell him, " What'dya doin' standin' here?! Get lost! " to get him to leave. All the while, Miles stared at the sight uncomfortable, hoping he wouldn't be seen himself.

Scourge put the money in his leather jacket pocket as he left, and didn't look directly at Miles at first as he tried to make a compromise with him. Normally, Miles was loyal enough to do literally whatever he wanted, so running into that level of hesitation from him was frustrating, to say the least, and he took deep breaths in and out, trying his best to not get him upset by losing his temper. Miles could tell how he was feeling, and wished that it could only be some other way.

" Alright, looks like we gotta start small. What people do you think in this city deserve to suffer the most? " he asked Miles, trying and failing to hide his exasperation with him. " Mean people, " the kid answered unhappily, not understanding what he meant by the figure of speech. Scourge replied, " Well, that man you chickened out of mugging was mean just like your bullies, and that didn't help motivate you, so clearly you want some different targets. "

Miles, feeling pressured to give him an answer, said, " I-I think the people should do something to really get it coming first. And if what you said about city folk was true, then just waiting for someone willing to insult me to my face means we'll be waiting forever. So if they're too afraid to provoke us, maybe we need to look for the people that aren't necessarily being mean to us, but to other people. Not that I care what bullies do to other bullies, I'm just saying I'd feel a lot better if I knew for an absolute fact that our target was an awful person who had it coming. " Scourge, getting an idea, asked him still feeling a bit frustrated with him, " You mean like a criminal or something? "

Seeing the annoyed look in his eyes, Miles said nervously, " Not you! Someone else! A criminal who isn't nice to me, who wouldn't give me a chance. Those are the people that deserve to suffer the most, but you've proven that you're the exception. You're not like those people! You're a good person when it counts… " Scourge looked at him stunned and conflicted once again, and then looked to the left and right of him hoping nobody heard that.

" That's a compliment. What I mean is, well, I had a lot of bad experiences with teenagers wearing black jackets. I heard them calling each other a gang sometimes, and they were the people aside from the cops who were the most willing to hunt me down and, beat me! I-It got to the point where the people of the island would hire them to look for me and supply them with weapons, and whatever they asked for, they got… " Miles was full of sadness and dread by the third sentence, getting increasingly more scared just at talking about it, and had to take a deep breath to calm himself down, remembering what Scourge advised him to do. Getting angry, he continued with a passionate desire for justice against his oppressors,

" Those are the kind of people I hate! Those are the people that should pay! The ones who love to hurt people to the point where they jump at the opportunity to do it to me! A-At least when I wasn't already in the process of taking stuff from their homes, the rest of the island dwellers didn't actively hunt me down. The worst they did was insult me when I was too far away from their frying pans and other weapons. So while the regular law-following people were certainly awful, they were the best of the worst. They're not who I want to hurt. I-I mean, they're not the people I want to focus on right now! The regular people of the world are just as discriminatory as criminals, but at least they're subtle. I wanna prove to them that I'm not to be messed with, just like you said, but maybe the best way to start with that is to find the worst of this city and make an example out of them. "

Scourge nodded, realizing that Miles' desire to be a vigilante could be the only thing that would get him to do what he wanted. It would be much easier of a transition getting Miles to fight criminals with him than regular civilians who hadn't done anything to him. As a result, the general target of Scourge's law-breaking soon switched to the random criminals he found in the inner city and alleys. That wasn't to say he stopped causing trouble to regular people, cutting in line and forcing people out of arcades for Miles' sake, but if he were to get Miles used to starting fights and breaking the law with him, it would be a lot easier getting him to start if he felt justified in it. He'd be able to make up excuses for fighting regular people later, just like his big brother did. But for the first year of their friendship, Miles only targeted criminals.

So he spent a lot of his daily runs through the city with Scourge doing just that, fighting criminals in alleys, taking full advantage of the sheer force at which he attacked with his super speed and how Scourge was always right there by his side. The only thing Miles really complained about when it came to that, was the smell of the dumpsters and trash cans that were often in the alleys that they had to run through looking for criminals, and fortunately, Scourge didn't figure out exactly why he complained.

On the fifth day that Miles ran through the city with Scourge, Miles gasped startled when they heard a gunfire sound in one of the alleys. Scourge immediately ran into it at sonic speed and homing-attacked the one with the gun in a blue blur, knocking him down with a thud, and fortunately for the already traumatized Miles, the gunfire had purely happened because the mugger had fired a shot into the air to scare the civilian he was robbing. As soon as Scourge knocked him down, Miles rushed in and slammed the mugger with his staff repeatedly, shouting angrily to him, " Take this, you bully! "

Kicking the mugger's dropped gun far away from him, Scourge could tell from Miles' shrunken pupils and trembling that he was still terrified from the sound of the gunfire, despite his vicious attacking and angry expression hiding it, and even if that hadn't been a clear enough sign, his use of the word bully gave it away. The civilian they rescued from the mugging stared at the sight in a mixture of anxiety, confusion, and appreciation, and quickly decided to run away while he still had his money, not trusting Scourge to not rob him himself after he was done showing his dominance over the mugger.

When they had attacked him enough that he seemed unwilling to get back up, but was still very much conscious and terrified, Scourge said smugly, " Send a message to all the other scum like you. There's only one lawbreaker worth anything around these parts and it's me! I'll be takin' your money, thank you, " taking his wallet out of his jacket. Miles added bitterly, " I think that'll be the best punishment, considering you were about to do the same thing! " and then smiled, feeling like a hero for what he had done to the robber.

After the two of them ran at almost the speed of sound out of the alley and stopped at the city park, Scourge said happily, " You did great, Miles! I'm so proud of you! " ruffled his hair and gave him a quick kiss on the forehead again much to his delight. Scourge exclaimed in excitement, " I didn't even have to do anything to make ya join in! You just came in swinging that staff of yours and being a badass! And what you said to him, actually talking to our target? Perfect! You're really getting the hang of this. We're gonna make the best duo ever! "

Miles giggled happily at that, and gladly ran after him as they continued their run through the city. While hearing gunfire again was terrifying for him, the sheer pride he felt in taking down a mugger right before he could commit the crime made him feel so great, that it was as if nearly all of his reservations against fighting criminals with Scourge were pointless. It was that moment that taught him that he was doing the right thing. It was satisfying getting all of that pent-up aggression out on someone he knew for a fact deserved it, instead of bottling it all up out of fear while feeling increasingly helpless and unhappy. He would still rather just stand there and let Scourge be the one cutting in line and taking money from more innocent-looking people, but for criminals, he was happy to be the one giving them what they deserved with Scourge.

While he would never stop being intimidated by strangers and being on edge from being in large crowds, Miles was able to get used to running through the city with Scourge, and with him stealing and winning fights with criminals all over the city, Miles quickly gained a reputation as not only a two-tailed fox, but as Scourge the Hedgehog's most loyal and threatening associate, out for revenge against a world that persecuted him for his second tail. Civilians still looked at him in confusion and surprise at him having a second tail, but as long as he was with Scourge, they were too intimidated to harass him.

A month of spending every day with Miles allowed Scourge to learn a lot about him from observing even the most obscure of quirks about his behavior. He noticed that the kid never liked to have his back to anyone, possibly out of the anxiety that they'd yank his tails if he did that. Whenever he did have to have his back to someone, like after cutting in line with him, he always moved his tails to almost in front of his body to prevent the person behind him from grabbing them. It was an instinctive response that Scourge eventually started noticing as he wondered why he was doing it and acting nervous for no good reason.

Getting more comfortable around Miles caused Scourge to be more reckless, forgetting how sensitive Miles really was, and that led to more instances where he would get him frustrated or upset. Interrupting Miles got him depressed and quiet at believing that talking was pointless, the kid was becoming increasingly more likely to get annoyed at being called kiddo and treated differently for being young, and one time, Scourge playfully pinched him to get him to stop being absorbed in a past memory and get his attention, only to startle him severely as a result. For the most part, though, he was just as friendly and considerate to him as he was before, and his insensitivity wasn't anything he didn't show trying to lightheartedly tease and poke fun at him when they first knew each other.

On the way to the first alley they'd run through, over a month after they met, Miles gasped at hearing the sound of a car engine backfiring and was thrown into a panic. The memory of the last time he had heard gunfire on his island came back so clear that it was as if he could actually hear the voice of the person who had fired it right across from him. " Freak! Hold still! " he heard in his panicked mind, and as a result, while he was already running to keep up with Scourge on the sidewalk, the fear of getting shot caused him to immediately want to hide.

As soon as they found the alley, Miles ran ahead of Scourge and hid himself in the dumpster, much to Scourge's shock and confusion. He had heard the sound as well, but he had hoped that it sounded too different from gunfire for him to panic, or that it had been long enough that he would stop reacting so severely to what he started calling his reminders. " Miles, it's okay! Come on, get outta there, it must stink! " he said opening the dumpster, trying to ignore the frightened gasp from Miles at him doing so.

Hearing that he was being called by his actual name stunned him back into the present for the most part, and despite his trembling, he forced a sheepish smile as he flew out of the dumpster and back onto the cement floor of the alley. Humiliated, he said quietly, " Thanks. I hate it in there… I just wanted a safe place to hide. " His head was hung low, and his eyes were downcast and miserable. Feeling terrible for him, and thankful that no one seemed to be around to witness the scene, Scourge asked him, " Were these what you usually had to hide in? "

Starting out depressed and becoming more passionately angry, Miles explained, " No, my island had so little people, it only had one of these big things, and I got thrown inside of it for trying to drink from the park fountain! Occasionally I'd hide in trash cans and be able to avoid getting hurt, but most of the time they either had too much stuff in them to fit me, or I'd get attacked and thrown into them instead, and then the contents of them would be dumped on me by those stupid teenagers! I hate those things!... Even the food in them is terrible. Just made me sick. "

Scourge knew he shouldn't be surprised anymore whenever he was given new information about how Miles had been treated in the past, but for some reason, he still had enough compassion in him for the child to still be horrified and stunned every time he heard about it. It just didn't seem fair that Miles was treated like that consistently his whole life, without even a single person feeling sorry for him enough to start helping him. " You'd think they would've gotten used to the second tail… " he muttered facing the wall to the left of him with his fist clenched.

Miles heard him, and continued to feel just as melancholic as before, saying, " No one will ever be used to it. " Scourge immediately replied, " I am. I love it! Used to it is an understatement. Don't listen to those jealous idiots, you're gifted, Miles. You're special! " and put his arm around him to hold him close. " Thanks, " Miles said with a small smile, thinking, " But that's only you… Everyone else knows I'm just a freak. "

Seeing that Miles was still depressed, Scourge tried to cheer him up some more. " Hey, you know, there's a photographer at the mall today! How's about I bring ya there to celebrate a month of our friendship? " he said cheerfully, with his smile a bit forced from pity. " Sure, okay, " Miles replied reluctantly, not knowing what a photographer was but not feeling like making himself sound like an idiot again by asking. With that, the two of them started running through the streets to the mall.

When they got there, Miles gasped at seeing a flash of light come from the small black box the photographer was holding in front of a couple. Scourge, misinterpreting the source of his anxiety, said to the photographer while giving him his stolen money, " Don't use the flash on it for us, " with an annoyed expression. Noticing Miles hadn't followed him up to the photographer yet, he reassured him, " It's okay, it's fine. You won't see that flash of light anymore. Now come here! Let's get a family photo! "

Miles nervously smiled until the final sentence, where he was caught between being really happy and excited and being nervous again at his picture being taken. Not wanting him to waste his money, Miles went up to Scourge obediently, and his nervous expression became a more happy one when Scourge ruffled his hair and put his arm around him holding him close to his side. The photographer told them to, " Say cheese! " and since Scourge did it, Miles followed suit despite not understanding why he should.

" There you go, " the photographer said giving them the resulting photograph, which had them in the same poses as before smiling happily, even if Miles was clearly trying to hide one of his tails behind his back. With that, Scourge handed it to Miles saying, " Here ya go, a picture of us for posterity! You can keep it in your pocket and treasure it! " Miles very quickly did just that, putting the picture in his leather jacket pocket and zipping the pocket up trying to avoid looking at the picture of himself. Scourge looked concerned at his reaction, wondering if his hatred of seeing himself ran deep enough to ruin photographs for him.

Trying to distract him, Miles cheerfully pointed out, " Posterity, huh? " Scourge, also wanting to lighten things up, replied, " Yep, I learned it from you! I keep tellin' ya, you're getting a better vocabulary every day thanks to that dictionary I found ya. And you're making me smarter because of it! Keep it up! " and gave him a thumbs up. Walking away from the photographer with him, Miles found it amusing and charming that Scourge, a wannabe gangster and proud criminal, was so proud of using big words just for the sake of it, and wondered if it showed that he really did respect him. At the same time, though, hearing that humbled him once again, as he admitted sheepishly,

" Well, I don't always remember every word I read about. I didn't even know what a photographer was until you brought me to that guy. Although that worked out for us, I would've irrationally said no otherwise. " Looking worried, Scourge said, " Don't tell me you've had bad experiences with photographers too! " Miles replied unhappily, " Okay. " " I didn't mean literally! " Scourge said in annoyance, which only made Miles feel worse.

Trying to pretend he wasn't offended, Miles reluctantly explained, " People on my island tried to take pictures of me to humiliate me, and worst of all, to spread the word of what I looked like so nobody would make the mistake of helping me, even if they didn't live on the island. They told me why they were doing it before doing it, so it's no wonder I don't like getting my picture taken. "

Scourge wished there was something he could to make him completely get over that fear, and all of his irrational fears, but all he could do was compassionately rub his shoulder and say, " Well, that's all over now, " despite knowing Miles' mind wouldn't register that as true. After that, they quickly resumed their run through the city, showing dominance over the various criminals around.

Another month passed, and on their way to their first alley of the day a morning after a storm, Scourge ran across a puddle on the sidewalk once again, but this time, the splash of water his shoes created reached high up enough to splash in Miles' eyes behind him. Most of the time, Miles was able to avoid such a scenario by wearing sunglasses and running beside Scourge rather than behind him, but this time, he wasn't so lucky, and the water in his eyes immediately made him close them out of an inability to see ahead of him. Not wanting to blindly run into anything, like the back of Scourge's spines, or a car, he stopped in his tracks to rub his eyes frantically in an instinctive reaction, forgetting that he was trying to keep up with someone.

Fortunately, Scourge quickly noticed a lack of the sound of footsteps behind him and asked the question, " You okay, Miles? " wondering if he had started flying behind him. Getting no answer caused him to immediately run back at the speed of sound to where he last heard Miles, where he saw him drying his eyes with his gloves. Jumping to the conclusion that he was crying and wondering what could've possibly caused it this time, he hugged him, getting his attention immediately.

" Thank you… I-I'm not crying, Sonic. A puddle splashed water in my eyes, and I couldn't see for a little bit. It's dangerous to run blind, " Miles said sadly after reluctantly letting go of him when the hug ended. " Do you have a lot of experience with that? I mean, you can't always stop running just because a puddle splashed ya, and it was pretty rainy back on your island, " Scourge asked unhappily.

" Sometimes it was a puddle, sometimes it was sand, sometimes it was, my own tears… " Miles replied, whispering the last few words full of shame and disrespect for himself. There was a brief silence as Scourge let it all sink in, before Miles continued sadly,

" It always sucked getting something in my eyes, especially when I was running! I had to constantly do zig zags and run in unpredictable routes to try to throw people off my trail, and in a forest full of trees for me to run into and tree trunks to trip on and bushes to get caught in, that was hard enough on its own even with being able to see. Sure, I could leave them all in the dust at first, but they'd never stop chasing me, they'd call up people in the direction I was headed warning them to be ready for me, and I would get tired eventually and need to hide… I'm sorry I brought up such a depressing topic again. I promised myself I'd stop talking about the past. You already know enough. "

Once again, Scourge could do nothing but reassure him. " It's okay now, little bro. You'll never have to set foot on that island again, " to briefly cheer him up for the time being. " Come on, let's go to the arcade, have some fun! " he added happily to his delight. " Sure! You know, Sonic, the very concept of a video game never ceases to amaze me. Being able to interact with a colorful fictional world in a way that's satisfying, with music and visuals nothing like that of the real world, it's perfect escapism! "

Scourge commented as they started walking to the arcade, " You wouldn't like modern games, then. They like to have realistic graphics that look dark and gritty, all black and brown. Oh, by graphics, I mean the way they look. " Wanting to not look ignorant, Miles nodded despite not knowing what he meant by modern games, as from his perspective, since arcade machines still existed in the present time, arcade games were modern to him.

" Really ought to thank the arcade's owner for building all of those amazing machines, " Miles commented cheerfully. Scourge chuckled at the end of it finding his wrong assumption cute, and said, " You think he programmed all those games himself? Nah, he just gets them from someone who did. I can't imagine he'd have the time, let alone the ability when all he's capable of doing is taking money from behind a counter all day. "

Miles looked embarrassed and sheepishly replied, " Oh. Should've known, " with nervous body language. Scourge playfully teased him, " What, did ya think that was the case for all stores, that every little tiny thing in a store was personally crafted by the store owner himself and all of the fruits and veggies were grown and harvested by him, and every little fish was personally fished up by the store owner himself? " There was a brief silence before Miles admitted, " Maybe… " having not thought about it all the way through.

Scourge chuckled and exclaimed, " Aw, that's adorable! " and ruffled his hair, saying lovingly, " Love ya, little bro. Never change. " Miles laughed nervously, torn between being blissfully appreciative of being loved and feeling frustration at the condescending treatment. He couldn't help being inexperienced.

Needless to say, Scourge ever since they first went in there had made it a monthly routine to go to the arcade that Miles liked so much, viewing it as the one fun part of the city. They would've gone every day, but Miles to Scourge's annoyance was opposed to that, explaining, " W-Well, the people going to the arcade can only have so much money, so what if they get to a point where they won't be able to show up there for you to take their money anymore? What if they give up and stop showing up there entirely because we show up too much? What if the arcade's owner stops getting people showing up entirely and gives up on the arcade? That's also why we shouldn't be too predictable and consistent, because if they learn to predict when we're going to show up, then we're gonna end up going there to an empty arcade with no coins for us to use. So we can't go there every day and expect it to always work out. It's just impractical. "

Scourge had no choice but to reluctantly nod in agreement, understanding that Miles had a very strong point, even if he was ultimately just telling him he couldn't do too much stealing or there would be consequences for him, just like his parents used to nag him.

After leaving the arcade together, they ran through the city for a while until the sight and smell of a burning building stopped them in their tracks. In front of them was a house on fire, and there were various firemen using hoses to put out the flames. Seeing the familiar sight made Miles stare at it with an expression of dread and horror, and the clouds just above the house started to increase in size rapidly and darken within the span of a couple seconds before pouring torrential rains onto the flames, as if in an effort to put them out. Of course, everyone noticed how unusual this was, having torrential downpours concentrated into such a tiny area, but Miles being in the city for so long had at least gotten people to accept it as a regular occurrence, if a strange one with no real explanation.

Seeing that Miles was trembling uncontrollably with his pupils shrunken at the sight and smell of the burning house, and one he had no real attachment to at that, Scourge sighed unhappily. He wanted to just grab his hand and pull him behind him as he ran away from the house with him, but that might only get him even more panicked at being pulled by someone so suddenly. He asked one of the fireman awkwardly, " S-So, why's it on fire? " The fireman looked at him surprised, knowing how uncharacteristic someone of his reputation was acting, and quickly answered as he continuing spraying the hose, " Lightning strike. "

Unfortunately, this was the worst possible response he could give for Miles, and the fact that he was a fireman looking in his general direction didn't help, as he started to irrationally fear that he would blame him for it and turn his hose on him. He exclaimed hysterically, " Lightning?! NO! Don't look at me! I-I didn't want this to happen, it's awful! PLEASE! " and impulsively started running away in a yellow blur, certain that the fireman's next action would be to try to drown him with his hose. All Scourge could do in response was run after him and eventually catch up with him, incredibly concerned and worried about him, while at the same time, he was frustrated that the scene he caused gave the people of the city even more reason to call Miles a coward.

Catching up to him and saying, " Miles, relax, " in a reassuring tone mixed with panic only gave him a startled jolt, and he impulsively turned to the right into the thankfully empty city park and continued running away, saying, " No, no! Everyone's gonna blame me for this! Everyone's gonna try to kill me again! We gotta move, we gotta change towns! "

Seeing that he had no other choice, Scourge scooped him up into his arms carrying him as he ran beside him and shushed him as he slowed to a halt with him, trying his best to get him back to his senses. Miles was surprised and caught off guard by that bold action, but being caressed reassuringly helped to calm him down to merely whimpering as he was being carefully sat down on the park grass and hugged.

Scourge explained to him with a smile as Miles returned the hug, " Relax, everything will be fine… Remember, Miles, you live with me, and no one's gonna cross me, and considering my father has an insane amount of power over the world, no one's gonna force him to move either. Hell, even if people do blame you, that'll just add to your menacing factor and make people less likely to wanna mess with ya, especially since you're with me… Things are different in the city, Miles. In your small town, everybody knew each other, so everyone was willing to work together against you, but in the city, everyone's a stranger. They're not gonna all rise up in an angry mob with people they don't even trust… And even if they do, I'll just run around 'em in a circle and catch 'em all in a tornado to humiliate 'em. With my super speed, I'm basically invincible compared to those slowpokes! So don't worry, Miles. We'll be just fine… "

After hearing a familiar sniffle, he realized Miles had started crying, and the kid said sadly, " It isn't just people hurting me that I'm worried about... I've always been blamed for lightning strikes, and they only started happening in a huge quantity in one area when I was born, when I was brought to the island, so what if people are right? What if that lightning strike only happened because of me? I didn't wanna be responsible for some random person's house getting burned down! But I couldn't keep it from happening. What if the same thing happens to our house?! Just like with the orphanage! It got struck when I was still living in it and I was barely able to escape! There were people in there and… "

It was hard to argue with Miles' reasoning, and Scourge couldn't help but be worried at hearing it, but ultimately, it was his job to comfort him, not tell him he was right all the time. Scourge reassured him successfully, " Well, that orphanage was full of people who hated ya. Now that you live with me, maybe that lightning won't wanna bother me because you like me so much. How about that? And besides, maybe the lightning that hit that house you saw, was going to happen anyways even if you weren't in this city. I know you didn't want that to happen. So if you really aren't the type to like setting things on fire – n-not that I've ever done it – then I can't imagine you telling lightning to do that, even subconsciously. Assuming that ridiculous superstition that you can control it by accident is even true! Those backwoods islanders might have just brainwashed you into believing it. I don't see how having a second tail would give you the ability to control the weather. It'd be cool as hell, but let's not get our hopes up. "

Miles smiled a little at hearing him say the word subconsciously, always finding it charming when a criminal like him used a big word like that for the sake of it, and feeling like he might be a positive influence on him in intelligence alone. Of course, when Scourge said he never set anything on fire, he was lying through his teeth, but Miles by that point blindly trusted him enough to believe him. After all, he did say to him, " You're a good person when it counts, " a sentence that still haunted Scourge with his supposed badass rebellious lawbreaker persona.

Finally feeling better, Miles looked him in the eyes and asked, " You really think controlling the weather would be cool? " full of hope. " Of course it would! It'd just be another reason you'd be awesome! " Scourge replied encouragingly.

After some brief consideration, he stopped smiling and let him go while saying, " But again, let's not get our hopes up. And even if you could do that, heh, let's not have you stealing my thunder. " Confused, Miles said, " You mean you like hearing thunder too? Why? " It took a couple seconds of Scourge staring at him in confusion for him to realize he had taken it literally, and shook his head before correcting him,

" No, no, it's just a figure of speech. Wh-What I mean to say is, I don't want 'cha upstagin' me, ya know? I'm the one who's the most badass criminal alive! That's not to say I don't want ya to get stronger and better, and more capable of defending yourself without me. I'm just saying, I don't want people to be too afraid of you, you know? "

Miles was silent for a second before cautiously replying, " I understand… " Unfortunately, the annoyance he had from that little speech slipped out in his tone, and Scourge caught it. " It's no big deal, is it? " he asked nervously, not wanting to get into an argument with his only friend.

" I, uh, no. I understand! Being a feared criminal is extremely important to you, and since you care about it so much more than me, it's only right that you should be the one with all the spotlight from that. Besides, spotlight isn't something I appreciate myself, so even pretending I could control the weather and stuff, it'd just give people even more reason to pay attention to me. One of the best things about having a friend is that you draw attention away from me. People can't focus on my second tail for too long when they have to talk to you the minute they look at it! S-So yeah, I understand, Sonic, " Miles explained awkwardly, and thought to himself, " It's an ego thing, " finishing the sentence where Scourge couldn't hear him.

For most of the time he knew Scourge, he found his unwavering confidence in himself inspiring and charming, something he tried to live vicariously through and support, something he felt was the source of Scourge's strength and allowed him to achieve things he'd be too scared to otherwise. But occasionally, Scourge's ego could get a bit too much even for him, particularly in situations where his brother was reminding him of how he should keep to his place and not upstage him from the limelight. He would always attack second, not first, and speak after he did. He wasn't the one in charge, and sometimes he was frustrated with himself for even questioning that, since logically, Scourge should be in charge, being the one who was not only older than him, but well-versed in common knowledge at a much greater extent than him, making him both older and wiser. Miles wouldn't even be able to spell his own name if it weren't for him.

Of course he should be the one telling him what to do, because he was the only one who was very likely to be right about what he should do. Miles didn't always agree with his ideas, for example, not thinking that spray-painting the orphanage was a good decision, but he would always end up at least feeling half satisfied with it in the end, and consiering he never felt 100% of any emotion anyways, how was he supposed to know if that satisfaction was hollow? He didn't even feel 100% happy when shown affection because a part of him didn't think he deserved it. Did that mean he didn't actually like being shown love? Of course not. He couldn't get enough of it. With Miles being conflicted with basically every emotion he felt, always feeling at least two emotions at once, it was easy for him to get confused, and not know what he wanted or believed.

" A-After all, why should I upstage you? You're the older and wiser one. You're the one in charge, and you should be! You never doubt yourself and the decisions you make, while I do, and if you're the leader of this duo, then it's better to have the leader be a confident one. Meanwhile, I'm perfectly happy just being your ' trusty sidekick. ' I-I used that word right, right? Heard some kids saying it near the arcade, and… " Miles said to Scourge earnestly, despite some hesitation deep down that he mostly looked down on.

" Don't worry, you used it right, sidekick. It's just kinda weird since it's applied to heroes, not criminals, " Scourge said with a smile that was slightly forced, as he was nervous from what he said at remembering that even he doubted himself sometimes. From the very first day he met Miles, he had doubts over whether he'd be able to keep a friend so sensitive and troubled and whether he should even try taking on that responsibility, but he would never tell Miles that. He'd only overreact.

Miles replied, " Uh, okay. Guess I won't say it often, then, " confused, as he usually tried to convince himself that by limiting his targets to criminals, he was a hero, albeit a non-traditional one. His only idea of a hero for his entire life was a person that would save his life and show compassion to him in spite of his mutation, and after meeting Scourge, perhaps even someone who liked his second tail. His definition of hero couldn't get any more simplistic than that and the bar wasn't very high, and since it was such a broad definition, applying to anyone who wasn't discriminatory against someone different-looking to the point of wanting them dead, applying it to Scourge was easy for him.

That wasn't to say he thought criminals were the true heroes for rebelling against the rules of society. He suffered from criminals in the form of the teenaged gang members hired to bully him and hunt him down, so he still saw most criminals as villainous, but Scourge taught him to view his friends as exceptions to the rule, and he had never met any policeman or even fireman who was nice to him even though they were considered heroes in society. Doctors and nurses he was considering as heroes now that he met some that actually wanted to help him, but other than that, his morality had been twisted, viewing himself and Scourge as some of the only truly good people in the world.

" Well, that's good, kiddo. Good to see you know your place! Again, no offense. Now come on, let's find some more people to show who's boss! People are learning to respect your authority already! " Scourge said ruffling his hair at the first sentence. For the first time, Miles was irritated at him for talking to him like that, and Scourge noticed, and awkwardly had to ignore it as they started running down the sidewalk together. Even being called kiddo by him had lost its novelty as an affectionate nickname as the continued reminder of how it was used as an excuse to subordinate him became increasingly more frustrating for him, and he hated himself for it.

A part of him appreciated following all of Scourge's orders because he didn't have to think, he didn't have to be overwhelmed with uncertainty trying to figure out what the right way to live life was in a world of people that didn't grant him all the opportunities he'd want anyways.

But another part of him saw Scourge treating him like a child and making him do everything he said as restrictive and even condescending, and felt like he wasn't truly free just because he left his oppressive island, because he had to do everything Scourge said, even if he was opposed to it. Just last week, Scourge tried to get him to mug a regular person again, and while he didn't punish him for refusing per se, his annoyance with him and embarrassment was punishment enough. Not enough to discourage him from doing it again, but it was still a grim reminder that he wasn't truly free.

Did Scourge not really respect him? Did he not respect the idea of Miles being his own person, and having an identity and set of interests and opinions separate from him? Scourge always got mildly annoyed whenever he expressed morality and hesitated to break certain laws just for the sake of it, always leaving it up to him to terrorize regular people in spite of his attempt to get them to take turns. He didn't seem to like the idea that he loved playing music and arcade games and reseaching the weather much more than breaking the law and being seen as a feared criminal. It was as if regardless of how much he didn't want to, Scourge looked down on him being different from him, like a bully, and Miles was frustrated that he even dared to feel that way about Scourge since he was still very grateful and appreciative of even having a friend at all.

The thought of being " free " from Scourge terrified him, and drove him to tears just thinking about going back to being all alone. He didn't even want to be the one in charge because pretending Scourge even would like to follow his idea of only ever victimizing criminals, he didn't trust himself to not screw up with that authority, especially with his lack of experience and practical knowledge. He could name every type of cloud in the sky, but that kind of science trivia didn't help his day to day life, so he often wondered whether being a genius meant anything at all.

The part of him that was still blindly devoted and grateful just for the sake of it hated the part of him that was " immaturely " getting resentful of being treated like the child that he was, the ignorant uneducated naïve kid that he was, and he worried that if that resentment grew too much, it could cost him the only friend he had. There were a few times when that gave him nightmares, about something other than his past for once. He was determined to not show anything more than very brief frustration and annoyance with him, refusing to ever get into an argument, and instead used the anger and resentment in a " productive " way by fighting criminals even harder than before, something that only made Scourge proud of him and compliment him for " really getting into it. " Was that really someone he wanted to become?

Unfortunately, Scourge had his fair share of frustrations with the friendship, too. He just watched him have a panic attack in front of him, the worst one he ever had, and could barely get him to feel better, and even after he did, he knew full well that he might still end up feeling that way again. It was getting frustrating how he was completely powerless to fix the problem permanently. Even two months after Miles was on that island, traumatic memories would keep resurfacing and he'd keep being reminded of the past by even the slightest of things, and it looked like a situation that couldn't get better.

At the very least, he could take comfort in the fact that he made Miles' present situation a lot happier, even if his mind couldn't catch up to it, but sometimes all of his efforts to help him felt pointless knowing that he would always be suffering from his bullies' mistreatment long after leaving their island. There was no denying anymore that there might be something seriously wrong with him, and he'd have to accept that as part of who his friend is, as depressing as that would be.

He couldn't even express the sheer frustration and powerlessness properly because if he told Miles about it, the kid would only jump to the conclusion that he'd eventually get sick of such an emotionally draining friendship and give up on it. Scourge would rather believe he was too stubborn to do such a thing and would always stick with him, but Miles even months after meeting him thought he was extremely lucky he was even bothering with him at all, and often wondered why he put up with him.

So the only way he could even remotely express that frustration and feel more powerful than he was, was to keep beating up criminals in the alleys, just like he always did. Miles at least had gotten used to it, and even seemed to feel good about doing it justifying it to himself, which Scourge viewed as a huge step from just preferring to lock himself away in his house like a hermit and avoiding trying to interact with anyone but him.

But sometimes he felt that he would give all of that away in an instant to just get rid of the post-traumatic stress Miles kept showing he had. He was at the point where he secretly bought a book on psychological disorders at the book store just so he could learn more about how Miles thought. He had to read it at night with a dictionary on hand because of all the big words. At the very least, he finished reading it understanding it fairly well, and was proud of himself for that, but he wouldn't be bragging about it any time soon.

Just like he had worried at their first meeting, Miles was an overwhelming friend to have considering just how much he had suffered in the past, and it was an emotional rollercoaster having to comfort him so many times knowing he would only feel the same way again. The only up-side, which he tried to focus on the best he could, was that Miles appreciated affection from him so deeply from a lack of getting it in life. His comfort with him had even caused him to get gutsy enough to start showing affection to him himself recently, hugging him when no one was there to witness it. Considering Scourge himself had never gotten any affection to his recollection until he met Miles, with his parents being neglectful and all, having a friend who desperately craved affection and felt it was only right to show it to him in return seemed like the perfect match. It was a shame it came with so many downsides.

He only wished there was a way he could have that much affection without having to deal with a person's numerous fears and insecurities, and every so often, he internally scolded himself for seeming to not appreciate his only friend as much as he should. He was being disloyal just from thinking about that.

An ideal friendship could only stay ideal for so long, and the longer they knew each other, the harder it became to be unaware of the problems and concerns they each had about it. Miles wasn't entirely okay with the power dynamic of their friendship and how he wasn't fully respected for who he really was, and Scourge wished Miles wasn't so overwhelming to deal with at times.

They still appreciated each other, of course, with Scourge viewing Miles as otherwise the perfect friend from just how blindly loyal, devoted, compassionate and polite he was, and Miles loving how he had someone essentially raising him and being there for him mutation or not, someone who believed in him. No friendship could be perfect. At the very least, they appreciated the fact that they had one. It wouldn't be until they would meet a certain princess that cracks would start to form in the seams.

For now, Scourge was devoted to being as good a friend to Miles as possible, spending nearly every waking hour of the day with him, refusing to let his natural impatience, self-centeredness and recklessness ruin the only positive relationship with a person he ever had. And because Scourge was so loyal, so devoted to making him feel like he was loved, Miles was even more loyal to repay him. He felt like he earned it, even if it wasn't perfect.

A couple times over the year that they were each other's only friends, Miles became sick with a fever and had to stay in bed for almost the entirety of the day, and Scourge stayed home with him to reassure him, bringing him all of his meals and letting him sleep with his head on his chest in bed as they watched TV together. He didn't like having to stay at home, but at least he felt like he was needed and accomplishing something good for someone he cared about. On the rare occasion that Scourge was sick, Miles was happy to help.


	5. Conflicted

Three weeks later, they were running by a residential area on their way to the city when Miles saw a civilian raking their lawn of leaves, and gasped jumping startled at the sight, which unfortunately caused the civilian to notice him and make things worse. " Come on, let's go, " Scourge said hurriedly, briefly grabbing Miles' hand and running with him. When he regained his bearings and managed to get his feet back on the ground, rather than only remaining upright with Scourge because of his tails spinning behind him blasting wind, he stammered, " T-Thanks, Sonic. I don't like those things… " to his concerned but understanding brother.

Scourge didn't want to imagine how much it would hurt to be hit by a rake, and the damage it caused to Miles' young skin, let alone how bad it would be to be hurt by them enough to start only thinking of them as weapons. There was a reason he promised to himself that if he ever took over the world or something, he'd get revenge on Miles' island for him on sheer principle.

As the winter began to start, Miles began to complain about the dropping temperatures that he had to deal with every time he went outside with him, and considering they spent most of every day outside, it was clear that solving such a problem was in high priority. " It's so cold… " Miles said sadly with his head hung low shivering a little, with a familiar depressed tone in his voice. Scourge remembered how hard he said it was surviving the winter with nobody giving him winter clothes as a kid, and immediately decided to make sure that would never be a problem for him again.

" Well, getting you a warm coat will be our first priority! I'll get ya a black one, one that looks like your leather jacket, but with warm thick lining inside of it. If we can't find one in the clothing store, I'll force someone to put warm lining in the jacket you got now. It'll be easy, don't worry. I know a guy, " Scourge said, putting his arm around him holding him close, and Miles appreciated it for two reasons at once this time, liking the warmth of it as well as the affection and love. " Thanks, Sonic, " Miles said, his smile being both appreciative and a bit strained from the cold. While their friendship wasn't perfect, he still loved how he finally had someone care about him enough to get him warm clothes for the winter.

After getting him a leather jacket with warm lining in it, Scourge set out to try to make Miles see the positive side of winter, and the first thing he did was bring him to the snowboarding hill that just opened up. As usual, he scared away everyone by running around them in a tornado and throwing them down the hill, leaving him and Miles alone. With a grin, he then handed Miles a snowboard saying, " Welcome to the most fun part of winter! Come on, Miles, snowboarding's fun! "

As Miles looked nervous, Scourge taught him how to stand on it for balance, explained basically how to move it left and right and how to brake it, and snowboarded down the hill in front of him to show it off, enjoying himself in all the excitement. Miles had to admit to himself that it did look fun, in spite of his concerns that it was too dangerous, and it helped that there wasn't really much to dodge on the way down the hill. He didn't like being left all alone, but watching Scourge snowboard from the top of the hill helped distract him from that anxiety, and soon he started to snowboard after him, carefully moving the board forwards by dragging his foot back on the snow behind him.

When the board tilted forwards as he started snowboarding down the sloped hill, he gasped, but avoided panicking and looked determined as he took some deep breaths, and soon, he was smiling at the speed that the snowboard was going down the hill, the wind rushing past him as the snowy scenery passed him by. For the first time in his life, he felt the thrills and excitement that Scourge wanted him to for so long.

By the end of it, he was giggling and laughing, much to Scourge's joy at getting him to loosen up. " Again! Again! " Miles exclaimed happily, and Scourge said, " Race ya! " before the two of them ran back up the hill. They never did go into the city to break the law that day, as they were too busy having fun.

As they walked towards the front door of their home with a smile hours before supper time, Miles said happily, " I have to admit, Sonic, winter can be pretty fun! Snowboarding isn't as dangerous as I thought it would be. " Scourge nodded, thinking, " That's because I took ya to the easy hill. Maybe I shouldn't take the risk of stepping it up. Poor kid would just change his mind at the slightest bump in the snow. " Miles stopped smiling at seeing his unhappy expression, and Scourge noticed and realized he had messed up. To try to cheer him up again, he said, " Hey, ya know, that's not the only thing people can only do in the winter. They can also build snowmen! "

" Snowmen?... Are those the things we ran past earlier with the branches sticking out of them? " Miles said unexcitedly. " Hey, it's something at least! Why don't 'cha at least try? Just to be able to say you did it. No childhood is complete without it! You just roll a snowball into a bigger one like this… " Scourge replied with some forced enthusiasm. He then showed him how to make a snowman, ripping the branches off a nearby tree for the arms and leaving two for Miles afterwards.

" Now you try! " he said, and Miles with a blank expression did what he was told, rolling large balls of snow and piling them on top of each other from smallest to largest, and sticking branches into the sides of the snowman he made. He didn't look too impressed, until Scourge said, " Hold on, I'll get some more stuff, " ran into the house in a blue and black blur, and instantly returned giving him a carrot, his old winter hat, and a bunch of buttons he tore off from his father's coat.

" You put the buttons in the snowman's middle section and then give it eyes, give it a hat after that, and use a carrot for the nose! " Scourge said cheerfully. " You'd waste a perfectly good carrot?! " Miles exclaimed missing the point completely, and Scourge looked at him with concern, seeing that even months later, he still thought like someone who didn't know when he was getting his next meal. After some brief hesitation, he said, " It won't be wasted, we can just wash it and it'll be fine. There's no dirt in this snow, just frozen water. "

Miles was reluctant at first, but soon followed through with what Scourge told him to do, and at the end of it, he placed the carrot into the snowman unhappily, before looking at the result and smiling a little. " Huh. I made that… " he commented putting his hand on his chin, a bit interested.

" It's no snowboarding, and it's sure as hell no badass law-breaking, but hey, at least you can say you did it, " Scourge said with his arm around him, patting his shoulder at the end. Miles didn't fail to take note of the fact that he was subtly telling him that he wasn't allowed to like snowboarding more than breaking the law, and sighed with downcast eyes. First it was TV, then it was reading, then it was violin playing, then arcade games, then piano playing, all of which he was constantly discouraged from liking more than crime, and now this. " What's wrong now? " Scourge asked, and soon caught his annoyed phrasing and stammered before clarifying nervously, " I'm not mad, just asking. "

Miles complained in innocent confusion, " Why is giving awful people what they deserve, against the law? W-Why is it considered law-breaking and, rebellious in society? Isn't giving bad people what they deserve supposed to be a good thing? That prison does it, and they outright kidnap people and make their lives a living hell! I'm supposed to be worse than them? I'm the bad guy here?! N-Not that I mind ' law-breaking ' after all the times I had to do it to survive, I'm numb to it by now. It… just doesn't make sense… I can understand my stealing food and water bottles and toilet paper from people being against the rules because I'm taking it from people who want to use it, even if they can just buy more whenever they want, the lucky bastards. I didn't have a choice. I earned the right to get what I needed to stay alive after all the beatings people put me through. So I'm the exception to that rule. I get it, if everybody was allowed to do that, nobody's food would be safe. So that rule makes sense. "

Scourge rolled his eyes knowing that Miles wasn't looking at him to see it, seeing that Miles' value system didn't really approve of his stealing, and Miles continued in sad frustration, " But, bullies deserve to get what's coming to them, don't they?... You're telling me those mean gang members we fight don't deserve it? Why is that wrong? Why aren't I called a hero and praised?! I-I-If the law is supposed to be based on punishing bad people, then why aren't the cops accepting what I'm doing with you? What, am I not allowed to do their jobs for them? Is that too helpful? I don't get it, what am I missing? Why are the cops still treating me like the bad guy when I haven't done anything wrong? "

" 'Cause they don't know what they're talking about, " Scourge replied quickly with a dismissive wand of his hand, acting annoyed to hide his nervousness and discomfort. He didn't fail to notice the implications of the fact that Miles was complaining about that at all, and he was getting worried once again that Miles wasn't really happy with being a villain.

" I'm doing literally the same thing the cops do except I'm not kidnapping people and holding them prisoner. How dare I. And all I use is a staff instead of that short black stick they have and that ' taser ' thing, that you said makes people lose control of their bodies and become helpless! I never experienced that myself, I honestly don't even know if my island's cops even had those things, but I can't imagine how bad that would be, and I've never done that to imprison someone. That's no better than tranquilizing someone with a needle! I give the worst of the world what they deserve, just like they do… and those hypocrites still go after me… People try to act like they're heroes, but I fight criminals too and I'm talked about like the scum of the earth, " Miles complained bitterly.

Worried at how he seemed to want to be a hero more than an outright criminal, Scourge tried to get him back down to earth in his eyes by placing both hands on his shoulders and kneeling to his eye level in front of him, and explaining seriously, " Is that what this is all about? Being praised?... I hate to break it to ya, kid, but, they're never going to accept you as a hero. No matter how much karma you deal out. You can be a hero in your head all you want, but it won't change how people see you. It's just not how people think. I hate to remind you of this, but, they're never gonna get past your second tail. You're gifted, and special, but they don't care. They just want you to be normal. "

He stood up and said while angry with the world, " Well, screw 'em! Why try to be a hero for a world of people like that? They don't deserve you trying to help ' clean up society, ' if that's all you're in it for! I thought this was about revenge! It doesn't matter whether people thank you for it. " Miles couldn't help but be intimidated at how irritated Scourge was with him, but he tried to keep it together and forced a serious expression to hide his fear, with only his eyes showing that he was on edge.

Scourge continued passionately, " See, this is why I taught you about graffiti, and why I get people away from you at the arcade, and why I get so much cool stuff for free and have so many connections, and why I cut in line. None of that has anything to do with fightin' criminals. That's fun too, but there's a reason I do all that other stuff, and it's because I want people to know that I go by my own rules! No one can tell me what to do! My old man tries to control me, when he's actually there, but outside that house, I'm free! I benefit from causing mischief with a reputation, as someone you don't wanna mess with, as someone people can't hold out stuff on or give the shaft! I do it to get the ultimate freedom, the kind you've been striving for since you were born! I do it to dominate the city! To be known as a badass law-breaker, who can do whatever he wants, to get my own identity with my own skills no matter what my parents think! It's not about cleaning up the trash for me, I can have any target I want. "

There was a silence as Miles looked sad and nervous with fear in his eyes, and Scourge, thinking he might have intimidated him, reassured him more gently, " Although it's fine if that's how you see it. Look, kiddo, all I'm saying is, I want you to see what I see. You're free now! The only rules you have to live under are mine! And y-you know what, that's okay, because I still live under some rules, too. There are things I make rules against for myself to avoid making stupid mistakes. And even with that, I got more freedom than anyone else in the world! There's nothing I can't get away with! There's nowhere I can't run! I want you to realize that you have that freedom too. I want you to know that you're not on that island anymore, that you can do whatever you want to make yourself happy! Because you've earned it, Tails old pal. You deserve to be happy. Like I said earlier, I live life to the fullest! And I want you to live life to the fullest, too, because restraining yourself 'cause you're nervous isn't fun. Obviously don't make harmful mistakes, like I don't want ya to touch any drugs or anything like that, but at least try to loosen up and have fun. "

Seeing Miles still looked nervous and uncomfortable, he compassionately put his hand on his shoulder, getting the kid to look at him, and said sincerely, " The world needs to start making it up to you. That's what I've been trying to tell you all along. Look, I can respect that you're giving jerks what they deserve. I hate those guys too! Way more than the random schmucks on the street. As much as I love breaking the law myself, I'd be furious if they did those crimes to me, so I can admire you wanting to give those bozos what's coming to them. It's a well-meaning selfless noble effort. You're a sweet kid! But by restricting yourself to taking your anger out on only them, you're restricting your freedom, and your potential, and not getting enough out of a world that should be paying you back… "

Miles sighed sadly, and Scourge continued calmly, " I know it's hard to accept that the world isn't worth fighting for, everyone's idealistic at your age. I get that you don't really wanna believe it. And look, I won't force you to do anything, alright? The whole point is to get you to loosen up and enjoy yourself, there's no point if you won't enjoy it. You can keep fighting those jerks to your heart's content! Get that stress and anger out, let people keep seeing what a badass you are! Just keep in mind that you're not getting the whole cake. You'll understand when you get older. "

Miles tried to avoid looking annoyed at how he was being treated like his age was inherently making him not as smart as him, but at the very least, he could appreciate how Scourge was trying to be nice to him after scaring him and was trying to give him well-meaning advice.

He was conflicted as he walked into the house with him. Scourge did have a point in that humanity making it up to him was long overdue, but that wouldn't erase the memories that his mistreatment left and the emotional scarring it did to him, and it wouldn't get the islanders specifically to apologize and like him. It wouldn't fix his problems. Doing all the same things Scourge did wouldn't get people to like and accept him, which was what he always wanted all along. He already enjoyed himself with Scourge, with the arcade games, playing music, getting to learn all sorts of interesting new things and having someone who cares about him. Wasn't he already being made up to? And he still felt miserable at times. His life was happy, but it could be so much more.

He couldn't imagine lashing out at innocent people and getting them to benefit him out of fear being that one thing suddenly giving him a happy life. He would feel more free, but he'd always be restrained in the painfully tight shackles of his memories, his self-doubt and insecurity would constantly be criticizing everything he does and thinks, and he'd always have to do what his friend pressured him to in order to avoid causing even more tension between them. He would never truly be free, so why bother striving for ultimate freedom that wouldn't make him happy anyways? But if freedom wasn't what he wanted, what was?

The logic in him was disagreeing with Scourge's reasoning at every turn, seeing it as self-centered, entitled and hypocritical, but Scourge did succeed in appealing to the emotional side of him that wanted the people of the world to stop being threats. If they couldn't ever become his friends, they could at least become his pawns. He felt discomfort at thinking that, and continued feeling conflicted, knowing that Scourge would never change his mind. He'd never accept him for what he really wanted. And judging from Scourge's irritation with him, being more assertive about that desire would only hurt their friendship in the long run.

Scourge brought to his attention that Miles wanted to be a hero, but what was the point if people would still treat him like a villain? What if he wasn't a hero after all? What if his situation left him with no possible way of becoming one? It wasn't like there was a really terrible villain that they could fight regularly for the rest of their lives. If there was, he'd probably be happier. He'd get Scourge to fight him out of thrills, excitement, and the ego boost of being praised for it, and it was possible that Scourge would've been happier, too, and end up being a hero, even if he'd keep breaking the law. But there was simply nothing he could do, and if he brought it up again, he would only get another argument.


	6. Meeting the Gang; The Cracks Burst Open

It was a week before Miles' sixth " birthday, " or at least the birthday on July 3rd that he decided to settle on for the sake of having a date of birth, and once again, Scourge was taking Miles to the arcade, one of his favorite places in the city. While he disliked the city in general, seeing the people there as gossipy and two-faced, at the very least he didn't get hurt very much by them, and when he did, it was only by the criminals he terrorized with Scourge, and it usually wasn't anything requiring days of recovery. It was better than his island, but he still didn't like it, so having a place in it that he loved aside from Scourge's parents' mansion meant a lot.

" Hey, idiots! Guess who?! " Scourge shouted after slamming the door to the arcade shut behind him, getting the attention of everyone in the room. The 5-and-a-half-year-old Miles was standing behind him, with his leather jacket on and sunglasses on his eyes, and he was trying his best to hide how intimidated he was by the large amount of people in the building, looking menacing with his arms crossed and a bitter expression. He couldn't stand seeing all those people there, knowing that there was a possibility they would hurt him, or at the very least make snide comments about his tails, but all of that would be over soon, and in an unconscious imitation of Scourge, he smirked in anticipation.

Scourge smirked smugly before speeding towards the blue-shirted large kid in front of him in a blue blur and knocking him away from the arcade machine in ball form, and grabbed him by the collar and saying threateningly to him, " Gimme all your spendin' coins! " standing on his chest. He then received a large amount of quarters as the kid quickly got them out of his pockets.

After Miles helped him carry some of them, Scourge shouted intimidatingly at the crowd of people watching, " Anyone else?! " Just like that, everyone in the arcade left, letting Miles and Scourge enjoy it alone. Miles sighed in relief relaxing his shoulders, his anxiety and distrust of the group of strangers no longer worrying him, and thought to himself, " Thank goodness… " smiling in appreciation for what his friend had done. 

Scourge then turned to Miles with an eager grin and said proudly, " Now we can start havin' fun! Race ya! " and ran towards the farthest arcade machine in a blue blur, causing Miles to giggle happily and run after him, spinning his tails like a propeller as fast as possible and slowing them down more the closer he got to his destination.

When they stopped at last and started putting quarters in the Galaga arcade machines, Miles said happily, " Thanks, bro! You're the best! " full of admiration for him. Even a year after the day that Anti-Sonic had found him in the woods, he still couldn't help but appreciate how much he did to make him happy, going to extreme lengths and even making compromises for him. " I might never get used to that… " Miles thought insecurely, as Scourge replied cheerfully, " No problem! " and gave him a reassuring wink and thumbs-up. They enjoyed themselves a lot that day, through breaking the law and otherwise as they justified it with their own twisted morality, and because Miles was with his only friend, he didn't mind one bit.

On their way home, the two young delinquents overheard some rival thugs making fun of Miles behind his back for what was hardly the first time. A skinny man in a black jacket said to a group of laughing men, " … and set on fire! And you should've seen the look on Two-Tails' face! He was hysterical! He tries to act like he's this tough little criminal and then he freaks out over- " Scourge growled loudly interrupting him and slammed into him with a homing-attack, standing up for Miles when the kid was just about to cry. In an overprotective rage, he yelled at and cursed at the group of men as he used his super speed and homing-attack to knock them to the ground and cover them with bruises, and only let them get up and run away reluctantly because Miles was there.  
The sound of clapping startled the two of them and caused them to turn around the other way, allowing them to see a sight that Scourge recognized from glancing at his father watching the news; the infamous Princess Sally Acorn, next in line for the throne of the Moebian Acorn Kingdom. From Scourge's point of view, she was quite a sight to behold. From Miles', she was just another stranger. Not only were they stunned at seeing her, but what was almost just as surprising was that she looked impressed. 

She walked up to Scourge formally, causing him to gasp and say, " Princess Sally? The Sally Acorn? That you?! O-Or just a look-alike dressing up like one? " too stunned to act cool at the moment. Alicia nodded right away and explained, " Your eyes have not deceived you, ' Sonic the Hedgehog. ' I came to this city because I heard a lot of stories about how strong you were, being the fastest hedgehog alive, and I'd like to take advantage of that for myself, if you're interested. " She slyly smiled at him, and Scourge, thinking he was being hit on by a girl instead of avoided for the first time in his life, smirked right back proudly and inquired, " Anything exciting? " as Miles watched on hiding behind him with curiosity and suspicion, keeping quiet to avoid getting in trouble with Scourge. He could tell that her speaking with him was a big deal, and he didn't want to make a bad impression.

" Obviously, I'm the heir to the throne now since what happened to my brother Elias, but my controlling father told me that I won't rise to power until he's done with it. Well, it's been years by this point and I've grown tired of waiting, " she explained. She seemed to speak in a mix between the expected formal royal way of speaking and a more casual mischievous punk manner of speech, as Scourge supposed he should've expected from a princess trying to be rebellious and contrary with no real exposure to so-called commoners.

Then she smirked mischievously once more, and told him, " If we throw my father into the Zone of Silence where he would never be able to come back, the world would be rid of him forever and I would be able to skip to ruling the kingdom right away. You'd work for me and my fellow rebels Bunnie and Antoine in a gang called the Freedom Fighters, which as you might have heard, are a group of people who fight against people using their freedom to do what I as the princess disapprove of. My royal soldiers, officially… So basically, I want you to get rid of my father in a coup. You up for it? "

Scourge said eagerly with his hand on his chin briefly, " That does sound exciting! And I heard he was pretty corrupt, too, so you know he's begging for it. " A worried moan slipped out of Miles behind him, and he turned to face him alert asking him, " What's wrong? " Even someone as morally bankrupt as him was immediately concerned at the little fox's expression of fear.

Miles was startled at being heard, and after his eyes darted around quickly in anxiety, he figured he might as well say what he was thinking now that he had his attention. He said quietly to him hoping Alicia wouldn't hear, " You can't trust a complete stranger! We don't know this person! What if she kills you after you've served your purpose? " " Why would I do that to such a hunk? " Alicia replied to him overhearing, smiling with her hands on her hips making Miles jump at her response.

Scourge turned to face her right away, still stunned at a girl actually flirting with him for the first time. Before that point, he had never even thought about dating and girls beyond appreciating their looks, being barely a week away from being a teenager, but now that he had a chance with someone, and a princess at that, he found the opportunity too tempting to resist. 

Alicia elaborated with an impressed smile, " I'll admit it, I think you're hot. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't impressed by you, especially after seeing you show those common thugs who's boss! And that combined with your speed, and who'd be a more worthy suitor? I heard you didn't exactly like living with your parents, so why not come live with me, and live like a king? I-I wasn't planning on asking you this right away, but… " She seemed bashful and nervous by the end, which confused him and Miles. Scourge wondered if this was her first time asking someone out, before eagerly agreeing, " Cool! Sounds like a plan! "

But after hearing Miles whimper quietly behind him and seeing that he was looking at him with a familiar fear and heartbreak in his eyes, he added, " I'll help ya out in your scheme, but on one condition. If I'm joining this gang of yours, my little bro Miles here is joinin' too! I ain't goin' nowhere without him! Capiche? " Miles sighed in relief that he wasn't willing to leave him all alone, but at the same time, he was also terrified at the prospect of moving in with a stranger he didn't trust not to hurt him, and Alicia's cold demeanor towards him wasn't doing anything to reassure him.

Alicia was skeptical, looking at the young fox in a leather jacket and shades with her arms crossed and her eyes half closed, but to his surprise, she didn't insult him for having a second tail. Instead, it was his age and lack of apparent physical strength that made her doubt him. " How young is he? " she asked with a raised eyebrow.

Scourge, knowing he was sensitive about that, scoffed at her and said proudly, " Doesn't matter! He's awesome, too! He can spindash thanks to me, move fast enough to give me a challenge AND jump in the air and fly for as long as he wants! Not to mention he's a genius. He's the most cunning kid I know! A quick learner of skills, like breaking into buildings, and very good at analyzing stuff too. He'll be great! So take him in with me and don't mistreat him or nothing, and I'll gladly partake in your little coup… " 

Alicia said, " Deal, " and shook his hand before walking away. After that, Scourge whispered, " Did I use those words right? " about his previous sentence. Miles grinned with a thumbs-up and said, " You're learning! " for what was hardly the first time, and soon went back to looking worried as Scourge stopped looking at him and started heading back out into the streets with him.

Miles couldn't help but be nervous about how his life was going to change. He would be going from spending all of his time with Scourge, someone he trusted, to having to also tolerate the presence of menacing strangers he didn't trust not to hurt him. It was true that Alicia had not insulted his second tail, which already made her one of the nicest people he had ever met, but for all he knew, that might have only been because she was playing it safe from hearing of his vicious reaction to anyone bullying him for it. How could he trust his new " friends " not to bully him behind closed doors? Or at the very least, to not take advantage of his willingness to do anything they wanted for them out of fear, never actually caring about him.

The worst part about his new situation would be that if they would mistreat him, he might not be able to tell Scourge about it in good conscience, because if Scourge stood up to them too many times, he might end up kicked out and robbed of his opportunity to live like a king with Alicia. He couldn't do that to him after everything he did for him.

Scourge was the first person to ever stand up for him on an island where everyone wanted him dead. He saved his life when he thought it was all over. He saw him tied to a burning stake and ran around it blowing out the flames with a tornado of blue wind, knocked his bullies down, and freed him. He took his side when no one else did, and treated all of his injuries himself, and he gave him a home, he gave him a family, and taught him so much common knowledge that he had missed out on from his lack of a school education. He'd barely even know how to write his own name if it weren't for him. 

While he learned a lot from watching science documentaries on TV and could name every type of cloud in the sky, there was a lot of things he didn't know and a lot of idioms he took literally, and his ignorance made him all the more grateful to Scourge for all that he taught him as a mentor. Not only was he like an older brother to him, but he raised him, when no one else wanted to.

Miles couldn't stand the idea of being ungrateful to someone who did so much for him by wrecking such a great opportunity for him, just because he was " selfish. " He would always be in his debt. So he kept his worries silent, and followed Scourge home to help him pack up his stuff. His parents didn't end up caring too much; if anything, they were relieved that he was moving out.

The most notable thing about the experience was that Scourge's father approached Miles just before Scourge and him walked out the door with their suitcases, and said, " Before you go, I'd like to thank you for the good influence you have been on my son. " As Scourge glared at his neglectful father with his arms crossed, Miles looked confused, and simply asked, " Good? " a double meaning ringing true that he didn't want to admit to himself. Not only was he confused because he viewed Scourge as good to him, but deep down he knew Scourge wasn't the best person, and doubted that he could ever really change him. After all, Scourge could've given up breaking the law entirely if he really cared about humoring him that much. Instead, he had to go along with him on whatever he did.

" He hasn't set anything on fire since you showed up, he's been holding back against the people he's picked fights against, and I've never seen him be so compassionate and caring to anyone before he found you. I've never seen him want to take care of someone sick before, but that's how much you meant to him, and there must be something really special about you to give my delinquent son a heart. Well done, " Anti-Jules continued, not noticing the meaning of Miles' bashful expression and how his eyes looked at his tails self-consciously at the end. 

" Special… " Miles thought feeling conflicted, and realized that as much of a non-presence Anti-Jules was in his life, he still appreciated the good in him. Scourge's father finished, " Here's to hoping this will keep up. " Annoyed at overhearing, Scourge went up to him and said, " Yeah, yeah, yeah, we're leaving now, " putting his arm around Miles and walking out the door with him. Scourge carried their suitcases while Miles held his violin case to his chest protectively.

There was a limousine waiting outside the house for them, the one that would take them straight to Alicia's castle. Of course, much to their enjoyment and the limousine driver's chagrin, Miles had brought CDs with him to make the long boring car ride more enjoyable, ones full of passionate rock music expressing anger, hatred and anguish as well as motivational messages about rising up against oppressors, who he pictured as the bullies from his past. 

Scourge didn't like sitting still, but what he lacked in empathy for most people he made up for in creativity, at least to the naïve Miles anyways, as he easily found ways to make the ride more exciting, ones that didn't involve bugging their driver and risking an accident. Not because Scourge was smart enough not to, but because he knew how scared Miles was of the idea of that. The kid already hated cars to begin with. Scourge took full advantage of the money he " earned " from fighting criminals for dominance on the streets, using it to get him and Miles drive-through take-out on their way to the castle, with Scourge ordering fried chicken and Miles getting a salad. They listened to music, enjoyed their lunches and had all sorts of friendly conversations.

After everything was all said and done with the evil King Acorn overthrown, Scourge and Miles started living in Alicia's castle together, and their lives changed forever. Miles went from having only Scourge around as an ally to Scourge not having nearly as much time for him almost overnight, all because he was lucky enough to get a girlfriend. She didn't know it at the time, but Alicia had started Scourge down a slippery slope of preferring the company of girls willing to show him far more affection than a little brother figure could, and it caused resentment to grow and fester in Miles the more Scourge spent time without him. Just like that, he was robbed of the only loved one he ever had. Something about that made him feel betrayed. At first, all he saw in Alicia was the girl who stole his brother from him. 

" Alright, Tails, now that I've gotten rid of that king, it's time for you to meet your new friends, the ' royal soldiers ' of my new girlfriend, so come on, guys, line up! " Scourge said to Miles with one arm around him holding him to his side. Patch and Buns reluctantly lined up beside each other in front of him, resentful about how he was in charge, and from seeing that their expressions could only make Miles fear them even more, Scourge gave them a scrutinizing look that made them nervous, something Miles found made them look more relatable. 

Since Alicia was technically introducing them to both Scourge and Miles, she explained pointing to the corresponding person, " This is Antoine and Bunnie. Antoine's the son of a pirate in a foreign country, very skilled with the sword, and Bunnie's from the South and ran away from home. Both of them are reliable capable soldiers for me, even if it might be a bit hard to understand their accents at times. " 

" It can't be that hard. I've been speaking with English for years! " Patch objected a bit annoyed, his French accent being very obvious and confusing Miles, only for Scourge to reply with an amused playful expression, " Ya don't need the ' with ' there, and it's ' that, ' not ' zat, ' " out of force of habit from correcting Miles' speaking. As Scourge teased his new gang from the very first meeting, Miles just stared nervously at the sight of the two of them being annoyed with him horrified at what kind of risk he could've been taking. 

Patch, who always felt self-conscious and miffed whenever someone insulted his struggles with English, only glared at him crossing his arms and said, " Who cares if that's not how everyone else talks?! People still understand what I mean to say. I-I used to be the most feared soldier of mon princess before she found you, I should get a little more respect! " Miles was caught between being able to sympathize with Patch's struggling with speaking well, and fearing his potential temper and wanting to move as far away from him as possible.

Scourge thought, " Inferiority complex or what? Okay, whatever, " and sighed before saying reluctantly with a placating gesture and a shrug at the start, " Okay, okay, I'm sorry. Just jokin' around, 'Twan! " Unfortunately, he went right back to lightheartedly teasing as he immediately continued, " Never knew anyone with a name like that. Bunnie's more common a name, if only because it's so unimaginative. Like, hmm, what am I gonna name my new rabbit kid? Uh, um, uh, Bunnie! Ha, brilliant! " 

He chuckled and added jokingly, " Well, her parents were from the South! " Bunnie looked at him with a deadpan expression the entire time he was in front of her, and even making fun of her name only made her roll her eyes as if she had heard it all before. At least she could keep her temper subtle.

" What does that have to do with anything? " Miles couldn't help but ask Scourge out of confused annoyance, before remembering that there were people in front of him judging his every action. Scourge was caught off guard by his question, before looking at him and saying nervously with a forced smile, " Well, uh, there's this old joke people liked to make, that people from the South aren't too bright. S-Smart, as in. Probably from not being educated well enough or somethin'. No one means anything by it, it's just a joke. " 

Patch and Buns stared at how Scourge interacted with Miles with shocked and confused expressions at how differently he was treating him. Why was he so nervous? Soon, it became clear to them why, as Miles looked sad in spite of his insistence and said in annoyance, " So just another excuse for people to be mean to people who are different from them in any way, got it. Another stereotype. You don't really mean that, do you? " looking disappointed in him at the end. 

Scourge immediately answered honestly, " No! Come on, I'm not gonna just assume Bunnie isn’t smart and so on just because she's from the South, that's stupid. And besides, it was her parents I was joking about, not her. Since she ran away from home, just like I did today, I figured she wouldn't mind. Same goes for good old 'Twan over here, I'm not assuming he's a typical French coward and whatnot just because of where his dad came from! And if he turns out to be, that'll just be a coincidence. I'm just joking around, guys, come on, lighten up. "

Feeling sorry for him and realizing that it was only right of him to try to have his best friend's back, Miles explained nervously, " H-He did that with me when we first met, too. Had a chuckle about my name sounding too old for a four-year-old. But he wasn't really trying to be mean to me, he was just joking around with me, trying to ' break the ice. ' Even though I wasn't in the mood. H-He doesn't have any problem with either of you, h-he's just trying to be funny… He doesn't know any better. " Noticing that Scourge looked embarrassed, Miles' ears drooped as he looked unhappy and said sadly, " No offense, " worrying that he was being a bad friend. 

From that one conversation, Patch and Buns learned three things about the timid two-tailed fox beside Scourge; he was bitter about people using excuses to make fun of people different from them, he was a loyal friend who would defend them when they would be in trouble despite fear, and he was a polite mediator who didn't want anyone on his side to feel offended. Nothing that they had learned annoyed them, he at least wasn't making unoriginal jokes about their names, and that first thing made sense considering that he had two tails, a shocking detail that they could imagine he got a lot of unwanted attention for. 

They started to wonder if the reason he was a criminal was not just out of peer pressure from Scourge, but out of bitterness and a desire to give the people of the world what they deserved. He had that in common with everyone else in the gang, then, although it was clear that he had the most legitimate excuse out of all of them. While everyone felt like he was too young to be in the gang and didn't look like that much of a fighter, with Buns having no respect for the timid child at all, Patch and Alicia could at least find his personality likable.

They soon ate their supper for the day, a steak to celebrate the successful coup, and it was easy to notice that Miles was hesitant to eat it at first. " Don't worry, the princess didn't make it. It was her servants, " Buns said to Alicia's mild annoyance. " T-That's not it, I just… The servants don't hate me, do they? They wouldn't, t-t-they wouldn't, sabotage… " Miles replied nervously, increasingly embarrassed at sounding paranoid as everyone stared at him with a confused look. Alicia told him at last, " I have professional taste-tasters, it's fine, " reassuring him slightly.

As he walked away from them after finishing his supper and went to play his violin in his new room for the first time, thankful that it was mostly soundproof, Miles thought deeply about his impressions of the people who would be his new associates. He thought playing a hopeful tune on the violin, " None of them hurt me. None of them insulted my second tail, none of them even pointed it out! S-So that's a good sign! Right away, they're already more courteous than anyone else I've met besides Sonic. Of course, it could just be that they've heard about how mad Sonic got when people did that, so they're just being smart. Okay, so maybe that doesn't really mean anything, then. Hmm… At least they didn't look annoyed at me. At Sonic, yeah, but, his social skills aren't exactly the best from what I saw there, he should've known not to tease them when they're feared infamous criminals and all. " 

Thinking about the individual new people he just met, he thought, " Antoine seems to be the most relatable one. He doesn't talk like everyone else does, he has trouble with speaking, and I sure as hell can relate to that, especially when I was younger, and he looks to be pretty sensitive about it, which is something I can relate to, too. He wants to make up for his lack of skill at English with a reputation he can be proud of. The son of a pirate, huh? I think I remember reading the word ' pirate ' in a dictionary… Thief of the sea, that's what it means right? If his father raised him to be a criminal, meaning he had a father who actually bothered to raise him to be something, why isn't he being all happy with him now? Did his old man ditch him, like mine did with me, in spite of spending all that time on him raising him to be a pirate? If so, why didn't Antoine refuse to be a criminal like him out of spite on sheer principle? I guess he was already bitter enough to want to do it. Must have had a rough life… Obviously not as rough as mine, I don’t think anyone knows what that's like, but still, there has to be a reason this gang of criminals are criminals... I guess I can imagine that society mistreated Antoine and Bunnie for their accents and where they came from and that made them bitter and wanting justice against the world. Very petty compared to my reason, but I can understand it at least. " 

As his violin playing started expressing a feeling of fear and dread, he thought, " What's worst for him is he's always wearing something covering one of his eyes, and I didn't do that myself until one of my eyes got sprayed with pepper spray and I had to keep it closed for a few days. But that thing he's wearing is more, dedicated and official-looking, than a mere washcloth wrapped around the head. Did he actually lose sight in that eye? Does he always have to put up with that? Having no depth perception, no peripheral vision and his eye constantly stinging?! That must be awful!... I came so close to that happening to me… " 

Playing a more somber tune that became more frustrated briefly, he thought, " Bunnie ran away from home just like Sonic did, so maybe her parents were just like his. Maybe they didn't love her, either. But why not?! Arrgh, what is it about parents and not loving their kids?! How could you not love your own kid?! I mean, if they're a freak like me, I understand being, embarrassed and, not wanting to bother with someone looking like that. But Bunnie and Sonic aren't mutants. Sonic's parents just cared too much about their jobs… granted, his dad had an important job, but he still had no respect for his own kid whatsoever. Or was that only something that started after he became a criminal? Why didn't he show love for him before that, then?... I don't know about Bunnie's parents, maybe they were the same way. Or worse. Bunnie… she at least doesn't insult me directly much. She keeps her disrespect subtle, she's ' sarcastic, ' according to Sonic. She didn't look like she respected Sonic at all, but didn't get all angry like Antoine did, so that's comforting at least. I won't have to be as extremely careful around her. Antoine on the other hand, I'll have to be pretty careful about not offending him, which means no correcting him on his English, or I can get used to being yelled at or glared at a lot, and the last thing I want is to give any of them a reason to hate me! " 

His violin music became the saddest of all as he thought, " Oh, no, please don't hate me… I just want them to accept me. Liking me would be perfect, but I'm not expecting that. It was a miracle it happened with Sonic... Obviously, I'll have to be extra careful around them. I won't screw this up! I'll be as polite to them as possible! I won't point out any of their flaws or mistakes – unless it keeps them from getting hurt in an emergency, I guess – and I'll compliment them when the time is right, no matter how hard it'll be to get myself to talk to them. For the most part, I'll just not speak at all until prompted to reply to someone, just in case. Oh, please don't hate me… " 

Feeling ashamed, he thought, " I'm gonna look like a nervous wreck, won't I? Why would they have any respect for me, then? The only way I know how to hide that emotion is to look annoyed and menacing, but that won't make them like me at all! Guess I just have to try to act calm. Polite and unassuming… No big deal, I did the exact same thing with Sonic. Only difference was, I told him all about my past. And that got him to feel really bad for me. Is that the only way someone can care about me?... Is it really necessary for me to force myself to talk about the past to get a friend? And look weak as my voice cracks when I talk about how I let people beat me up and insult me? I'm not strong like they are… Well, none of them are exactly muscular, but I'm sure they're all better in a fight than I am. I have to rely on a staff and a spindash as a crutch just to get by… " 

His violin tune became hopeful with an underlying feeling of anxiety as he thought, " But anyways, I won't tell them about my past if I don't have to. I'm sure they'll take note of my reminders and figure it out anyways, it's pretty easy to tell when I'm uneasy. In fact, I bet they've noticed some of them already, considering I acted all paranoid about my supper being poisoned. But as long as I still do everything they want for them and fight as hard as I always have, it won't matter. I won't look like a burden to put up with if I'm useful enough. I'll be blindly loyal and obedient! And I'll compliment what they do right and be polite to them! I'll make them like me!... Hopefully. "

When he was finished playing the violin, feeling too tired to continue, he made himself some tea in the kitchen thankful that the ingredients were there, and went to bed. Unfortunately for him, he had trouble sleeping and woke up in the morning scared from nightmares about his new gang bullying him. Still not used to living in Alicia's castle, he took a second to readjust to his new room as he opened his eyes to Scourge saying cheerfully, " Wake up, Tails! We're havin' breakfast like royalty now! I mean, it's not ready yet, but I figure I'd get ya up early. " 

Trying to hide how sleepy he felt, he reluctantly got out of bed and followed Scourge into the kitchen as Scourge quietly reassured him, " Don't worry, I know you're nervous, but the people of this gang won't hurt you. Trust me. " 

Miles combed his hair in the washroom while awkwardly trying to ignore his reflection in the mirror, following his morning routine before it was time to head to the kitchen. Unfortunately, he still couldn't help but be annoyed whenever he saw that Alicia was being shown more affection than he ever was, and all because she was a girl who showed interest in it. " What makes her so special? " he thought with his arms crossed as he thought back to seeing Alicia kiss Scourge passionately from a distance. 

" Nothing, that's right, nothing! Sure, she's a princess, but anyone could be one if they belonged to the right family, it's not like she can fly! It's not like she's a genius! It's not like she's a… " His anger faded into depression and his head hung low as he finished the sentence in his head. " A freak… " he thought, his eyes wandering to his two tails again. He started shaking, and his expression changed, boiling with rage and trying to hold back the tears in his eyes. Full of hatred for himself, he clenched his fists and angrily turned his head away as more people came to the kitchen table, thinking that it just wasn't fair.

At the same time, he hated himself for that line of thought, recognizing that he was jealous and clingy and possessive, feeling entitled to being the only loved one Scourge had. Lost in thought as he finished his breakfast with everyone else, Miles miserably thought finishing up his pancakes, " What kind of a friend am I? I should be happy for him! So what if he doesn't have as much time for me anymore? If I was in his position, being given so many hugs and kisses, I'd take full advantage of it, too! Why shouldn't he spend most of his time with this, girl he never knew before instead of his, own little brother who was the first person to ever love him?! " He clenched his fork with his hand shaking and closed his eyes tightly, trying to bottle up the rage boiling inside of him. " N-No, calm down, Miles… you whiny mutant. I'm NOT getting worked up over this. What is wrong with me?... What's so great about girlfriends anyways?! "

" You okay? " Scourge said to him suddenly putting his hand on his shoulder. Miles yelped and jumped, distracted from his thoughts, and said to him, " Wh-What?! " panicked. Everyone at the table looked at him nervous and confused, and he tried to calm himself down from the instinctive response and convince himself he wasn't in trouble as Scourge lightheartedly explained, " You were looking a little annoyed there. You okay? " Miles was embarrassed realizing that everyone had seen how angry he felt, in spite of the fact that he hadn't said anything to reveal it. Perhaps hiding his feelings wasn't as easy as he had hoped.

After a brief silence where he looked at Scourge and Alicia alternately, feeling indignant at how Alicia was sitting so close to his big brother, Miles replied cautiously with his eyes darting between them and the table in front of him, " I-It's just that, well… It's just confusing. We've been best friends for such a long time and now you're showing more affection to someone you just met than you ever did for me! N-No offense, your Highness. I just don't understand! Why do you kiss HER on the lips? " 

Patch accidentally did a spit take with his water at that innocent question, and Scourge chuckled lightheartedly from his naivety as Alicia gave him a funny look and Buns laughed at him uproariously. Scourge then stopped laughing from that and growled at her to get her to stop, before smiling at Miles and explaining playfully, " 'Cause that's a boyfriend and girlfriend thing, duh! What, ya didn't know that? It's nothing to get worked up about. It'd feel weird any other way. "

" Why? " the six-year-old Miles asked completely confused, his ears drooping sadly at being laughed at and judged. Scourge said cheerfully, " 'Cause she's a girl and I'm a guy. That's just how it works. When you're older, you'll know what I mean. Some things you can only get out of a chick! Everyone knows that. Some day you'll get your own, " shrugging casually at the final sentence.

Feeling increasingly embarrassed, and wanting to avoid admitting that he didn't believe he'd ever get a girlfriend himself, Miles asked, " So is this another thing you'd learn from school? " Scourge was about to respond when Patch remarked, " You weren't kidding. He makes me look educated! Are you sure he's ' genius? ' " Angry at Miles feeling insulted again, Scourge threw his syrup-filled plate in his face saying in annoyance, " Shut up! " knocking him out of his chair onto the floor. A twinge of fear and worry made Miles jump at seeing that and flinch, which he promptly was annoyed with himself for when he shouldn't have gotten such an attachment to him so fast, when he insulted him at that. Either way, Patch had just made a huge mistake.

Everyone had just finished their pancakes by that point, which was possibly the only thing keeping an outright food-fight from breaking out between him and Patch, although that could've been a safer alternative considering an actual fight happened instead. Patch got up growling and indignantly jumped at him with an angry shout and knocked him out of the chair onto the kitchen floor to start hitting him repeatedly, to which Scourge responded with a swift punch in the gut that knocked the wind out of him. 

With that, he pushed him off him roughly, got up quickly and put his foot on his back triumphantly with a smirk, saying, " See if I let ya do that again! " before kicking him for good measure. Patch growled, but didn't feel like spending the rest of the morning aching from any more bruises than he already had, so after Scourge said, " Say what you're known for! " mocking his accent, Patch said in resignation, " I surrender, " and Scourge let him push himself back up from the floor. The sad part was, that was far from the first time a fight between them had happened.

Watching the fight from his chair at the table, Miles couldn't help but smile in adoration at Scourge standing up for him once again, and this time to someone he was being pressured to get along with. He was only smiling for a couple seconds, however, as he soon wondered if his brother was getting in trouble with the princess for it. A quick look at her showed him that Alicia was staring at the two with her arms crossed and her eyes half closed looking annoyed, but she had a cocked eyebrow. Miles wondered if that meant she was going to tolerate Scourge standing up for him and being rude to Patch, and hoped he managed to successfully guess that from her mere facial expression considering what little experience he had with non-violent social situations. " I'm lucky I have any social skills at all, " he thought ashamed.

While Alicia didn't like how Scourge could risk injuring one of her own teammates with such impulsive behavior, she valued the skills he contributed to the gang enough that she was willing to tolerate it, not that she'd be able to get him to stop regardless as long as he stayed with her. The closest she ever came to trying to make him stop was deadpanning, " Okay, okay, guys… " and that was right before Scourge had beaten Patch into submission anyways.

Scourge walked up to Alicia looking proud of himself, and said, " See how easy your boyfriend here can win a fight? Not like the self-proclaimed ' pirate ' who doesn't even have a ship! " Patch had to hold himself back from replying, " Shut up, " and potentially provoking another fight with him, as he was already rubbing his bruises from the last time. Instead, he just started cursing under his breath in French to Miles' confusion. 

Miles asked in annoyance with one elbow on the table leaning his head on his hand in frustration, " What's a girlfriend supposed to be anyways? Who cares if she's a girl or not? Why's that special? "

Buns deadpanned right away, " Do you even know what a girlfriend is? " Miles felt embarrassed again and mumbled, " No… " becoming painfully aware of how he was the youngest in the gang. Alicia explained calmly to him looking deadpan, " It's the intermediate stage between friend and wife. " Miles said in confusion, " T-There's a, huh? Why? You do love each other, don't you? Why don't you just skip straight to being married? " causing Patch to do another spit take with his drink as everyone snapped to his attention.

Scourge laughed nervously rubbing the back of his neck while Alicia faced him with her arms crossed and a questioning look, clearly wondering if he would ever be serious with her. After a few seconds, Scourge cleared his throat and tried to act cool again, saying to Miles casually, " Come on, man, that soon? I mean, it does sound nice being married to a princess, but these things take time! You gotta let a relationship sit to see if it'll work out, to see if you'll always like each other! Besides, I'm not even 18 yet. I can't be gettin' married! "

Miles cluelessly said in confusion, " Can't Her Majesty just change the law? " Scourge said, " That's n-not what I mean. I'm still young, you know! There's still lots of girls I've never, I mean, experienced yet! You gotta test out the waters first! Then you can make a permanent decision! " with it soon dawning on him that Alicia might not be approving of him talking as if he wouldn't always be dating her. 

" No offense, babe, I can't imagine it not working out with a PRINCESS and all. I just mean that, well… " Scourge said nervously to Alicia. He had his head sort of down scratching his forehead nervously by the end, his eyes darting around as Patch and Buns seemed amused at his predicament.

" That he's only had one girlfriend so far, " Miles explained to Alicia innocently when it dawned on him, wanting to make sure he wouldn't get in trouble. Scourge didn't want his first to be his last, which Miles could sort of understand. Patch laughed, " Ha! " at that, only to look scared with his pupils shrunken realizing he was in trouble again, and with someone who was impossible to run from. " Non, not again! I-I'm sorry! " he sputtered out right away, his hands in a placating gesture.

Scourge at first glared at him wanting revenge, but it soon sank in how familiar that first sentence sounded, and as he looked over at Miles' scared reaction to it, his anger died down in sympathy for the child. " I'll let it slide, this time. You're lucky the kid is here, " Scourge said in annoyance. Patch was stunned at that response, realizing that Miles actually felt sorry for him, and felt uncomfortable and self-conscious as a result. 

At the same time, he couldn't help but notice how convenient it would be for him if Miles' pity for him could keep that up, saving him from lots of future attacks in the process. He wished he could just punch that smug blue hedgehog who stole his thunder without having to fear the consequences of being hit back, and tried to push to the back of his mind the thought that he was a coward.

Scourge turned to Alicia and said with a nervous smile, " There's no hard feelings, right, babe? " putting his arm around her savoring the closeness and affection. Alicia rolled her eyes and said reluctantly, " No. I understand, Sonic, " keeping herself from admitting that she had never had a boyfriend before him. Scourge said relieved, " That's good! So do ya get it now, Miles? "

Miles replied in confusion, " Not, really… I mean, isn't wife the better next step? The high point of ' relationships ' that everyone looks forward to reaching? From what I've seen on my island, at least, in the passing… " Scourge said, " Yeah, but ya don't wanna commit yourself to loving one girl ya don't even know without ever getting the chance to enjoy being loved by anyone else! " Being directly reminded of how quickly Scourge decided to become friends with him and even adopt him, Miles asked, " Isn't that what friendship is? "

There was a brief silence where Scourge looked speechless and dumbfounded, before having a great big smile on his face. " Aw! That's adorable! " he exclaimed, overwhelmed with affection, and ruffled his hair lovingly saying, " Don't ever change. " In spite of all the attention that got him from the rest of the gang, Miles couldn't help but smile and sigh with his eyes closed at instinctively appreciating the loving caress and display of affection, something he had been completely deprived of for most of his life. But there was, as usual, a nagging feeling in the back of his mind expressing irritation and frustration at being treated as if his age, something he couldn't even help, was the most important thing about him. Was it really that different from being treated differently for his tails?

As Scourge stopped the caress before he knew it, Miles couldn't ignore that he felt like he was the center of attention, his heart pounding in his chest at the pressure of everyone at the table gawking at Scourge showing a caring side to him, still not used to that odd contrast with his punk persona. To them, he was basically two people at once; a caring brother one moment, and a smug self-obsessed punk the next. They weren't sure which they wanted around, since the former seemed too soft for their gang and the latter was insufferable.

Buns said to him with a cocked eyebrow, " So you're not even mad at Miles for letting that out on ya? Ya know, the utter lack of experience with you getting any girls? " Miles looked nervous, tensed up, and said, " I-I just didn't want him to get in trouble! So I explained it better for him, that's all. Was that a problem? " 

Buns sighed and said bitterly, " Arrgh, I'm guessing the little runt's gonna be the one who gets the preferential treatment. Can't wait. " Miles felt conflicted at hearing that, being relieved at first, only to get worried at being resented out of jealousy by everyone. He could already feel it coming with Buns, and the fact that he tensed up at hearing, " the little, " expecting to be called a freak at first didn't help, nor did the fact that everybody noticed his reaction.

" I'm sorry! I don't want to annoy any of you! I-I just want you guys to not hate me! " Miles blurted out frightened to his embarrassment, feeling the weight of Buns' exasperated look on him while everyone else just looked at him in confusion. " Pathetic, " Buns thought with her arms crossed, rolling her eyes as everyone else just seemed to look at him with an unusual amount of concern.

Trying to lighten things up, Scourge said lightheartedly, " We know, we know. You don't wanna rock the boat. " Miles was silent briefly before saying quietly, " They have a boat? " Patch chuckled at hearing that, causing everyone to look at him in shock at his harmless-sounding laughter. Realizing that he had gotten everyone's attention, Patch said, " What? I just like not being the only one. " Miles smiled sheepishly at that, realizing that perhaps they had something in common after all. While Patch still wasn't entirely sure about someone as young and naïve as him being part of the gang, the kid's hatred of humanity not withstanding, he at the very least knew he would appreciate how he wouldn't be the only one screwing up English.

In the first two weeks that Miles was getting to know the Anti-Freedom Fighters, he tried to be as polite and well-behaved and unassuming as possible to them to avoid provoking them into hurting him. He was almost just as paranoid of them as he was of any of the strangers he had met, in spite of the fact that he knew he had Scourge's protection. It didn't take long for him to take note of how none of them ever really commented on his second tail, not even Buns, who was the most sarcastic about him. It never failed to strike him as ironic how only criminals had ever shown him that common courtesy. But even them not insulting him directly didn't keep him from worrying, and he made sure to not even so much as say any sarcastic remarks, even when Buns made him want to.

The Anti-Freedom Fighters found it rather strange how just like with Scourge, Miles showed two completely different sides to him, that of a polite naïve kid who was easily frightened when just around them, and of an angry and bitter criminal out for revenge against humanity when blindly carrying out their orders. He seemed so polite most of the time, but fought against their enemies with wildly violent pent-up aggression expressing hatred for humanity as a whole. Confused about which side of him was the real him, Alicia said to Scourge, " I thought he was all polite and meek. Where's all this aggression coming from? " 

Scourge, not wanting to delve too much into his past as Miles dealt finishing blows to knock out their enemies with his staff furiously, only very briefly explained it to them as, " He's been bullied… To put it lightly. " They also noticed how he never acted out that way on his own. To Alicia, he was the perfect soldier, obedient to the letter and not doing anything important without approval.


	7. Forming New Bonds: The Finale

From hearing beautiful violin music, Alicia rushed into the room where she kept her abandoned childhood violin and nearly gasped in awe at how talented Miles really was with it. It was to the point where he was so absorbed in the music and had such superb muscle memory that he was playing it flawlessly with his eyes closed, focused purely on expressing emotion. When he finally stopped playing, with the music piece ending with an underlying feeling of anxiety and dread as if he was wondering if someone was watching him, he gasped and jumped at seeing Alicia sitting on a chair across from him at the dining table, with an impressed look on her face rather than an annoyed one.

" Impressive! " she said looking awestruck, having to make herself look casual and sly afterwards to regain her composure. " You, you liked it? " Miles responded, thankful he had the habit of clutching objects when startled rather than dropping them. " Who wouldn't? " Alicia asked.

" N-No one as far as I know, I mean, I've never, no one's ever heard me play music before… aside from that one guy Scourge forced to teach me the violin and then my piano teacher as well, but, um… well, they complimented me too. I'm rambling, I'm sorry. A-Am I in trouble for going in here without permission? I-I wanted somewhere to be alone and, I saw this lovely violin! It was like it was calling out to me. I have one of my own, so… sorry, " Miles rambled, forgetting to put on a confident act from sheer fear and awkwardness.

" No, it's no problem at all! You feel free to play music whenever you want, Tails! " Alicia said cheerfully as she got up to walk out of the room. " O-Okay, thanks… " Miles said nervously, looking away trying to hide the fact that he still wasn't comfortable with that insult being used as a term of endearment, no matter how much Scourge tried to encourage her and Patch to use it. Not that he would ever admit that, as he wanted to prove he had gotten stronger and was getting over his past, and all of the triggers he was revealing to his new friends were detrimental to that enough. As he started playing a more sad tune, he wondered why they were even putting up with him.

As the days went by and Alicia started getting to appreciate Miles for his good qualities more and even bonding with him over their mutual annoyance with Scourge eventually, Alicia gradually started to get more respect for him, and with that respect came preferential treatment where she stood up for him and reassured him nonchalantly, to the point of insulting and arguing with Buns for her insensitivity to him, and with all of that, Miles started to warm up to her. She became more than just the girl who stole his best friend from him. 

If anything, he started to like her more than Scourge. She was one of his closest friends in the gang, and he ended up feeling guilty about how he had started out hating her so much. After becoming her best friend in the gang, he became determined to make it up to her in his mind by being as devoted and considerate as he could to her from then on.

Patch noticed this change along with everyone else, and while he was growing to appreciate Miles as well, he couldn't help being annoyed at how Scourge used standing up for Miles as an excuse to attack and insult him for saying anything that could've unintentionally upset Miles. In that position, it was easy for him to realize how sensitive Miles actually was. But the young evil genius noticed that potential for resentment and tried his best to diminish it, while at the same time hoping he could get the same kind of brotherly friendship out of him that he did with his increasingly absent brother figure. Patch wondered if he was just sucking up to him at first until he realized how impulsive Miles' affection could be at times, with his clinging to him for security when startled and whatnot being done so quickly and stopped at the first indication that it wasn't approved of.

Around 7:00 at night nearly two weeks after Miles was introduced to the gang, Patch and Miles were on their way through a mansion full of valuables that could be carried in their hands, which Alicia sent them to in order to, " confiscate for the Acorn Empire. " When they had almost reached their destination room, the stormy weather outside reached a point where after one particular lightning strike, the power went out in the house, leaving the two of them in pitch darkness. Miles gasped, and Patch, who had gotten used to having to reassure him when the kid had firmly established by now his reputation as the new team coward, shushed him and whispered, " It's just a black-out. We'll be fine. "

A combination of his tone, whispering, and familiar voice and French accent reassured Miles instantly that he was being spoken to by a friend who cared about him, but he was still worried. At first, Patch had been awkward about speaking that way to him and had to force himself resentfully to do it, but as he kept doing it deluding himself into thinking it was all an act, the reassurance became second nature to him, and he didn't even mind doing it in public. 

He started continuing to walk down the hallway leading them to the room with the most luxuries in the house, only to jump in surprise at feeling a small gloved hand grab his and hold it. One quick look over his shoulder revealed that it belonged to Miles.  
The little fox wasn't holding his hand tight enough to cause pain, but his trembling and grip made it clear he was looking for comfort. Patch was self-conscious of it, needless to say, but absent-mindedly found himself holding his hand back, closing his fingers over the other side of Miles' hand rather than trying to pull away, before realizing what he was even doing. He wondered if it was from a sort of paternal instinct towards the six-year-old.

" Are you afraid of the dark? " he whispered, realizing too late that he might offend him. Miles never was that willing to admit when he was scared, which was often. " N-No, I'm a-a, I'm worried about getting separated from you in the dark! You don't know how violent the person of this house might be! Not to mention I could bump into something or step on something painful before my eyes adjust. Antoine, please? P-Please?! " Miles whispered back with fear in his eyes, trying to fake an annoyed expression at times to save face.

Patch was still rather self-conscious of holding his hand, no matter how much the kid had endeared himself to him in the past week, but his pleading was enough to soften him up and make him reluctantly agree, " Alright, as long as the lights are off. Do not tell anyone, " as he began walking with him in the dark hallway, Miles trying to stay as close to him as he could get away with. 

" Thanks, 'Twan! ' Merci! ' " Miles whispered full of happiness and adoration for him. Patch smiled in bemusement at how the kid liked him enough to try to speak his language, especially considering that he didn't even have a perfect grasp at his own, and would never fully understand his.

" Oh, uh, am I allowed to call you that? I-It was an affectionate nickname… I-I mean… " Miles said nervously. " C'est bon, you can call me 'Twan, " Patch replied casually, not wanting him to worry anymore about something so minor. " Oh, good, " Miles said in relief.

After several seconds of silence where they walked into the room with the most luxuries, felt around for the couch and sat down on it while they waited for their eyes to adjust to the darkness, Miles asked Patch sadly, " So, um… what happened to your eye? " trying to break the silence somehow. Patch said in confusion, " Huh? " Miles stammered, " I-If you don't mind me asking. I just hope it won't happen to me, too. "

Miles looked sad as his head hung low with downcast eyes as he elaborated, " I came close to it a lot of times with mean people throwing sand in my eyes, and even something called ' pepper spray, ' which hurts like hell… I-I-I don't wanna talk about it. Point is, what's the, the limit, I have to watch out for? " Patch gasped at Miles revealing a little bit more of the extent of the bullying Scourge alluded to, as even he was horrified and sickened by that kind of treatment to such a young child for such a superficial reason. He promptly was embarrassed with himself for that, but it was too late to cover it up now.

" Well, um… " he said quietly, scratching the back of his neck. " I-I'm not knocking the patch, 'cause it's cool! It looks badass! I-I'm just saying I don't want to be injured more than I've already… been… That could've been me… " Miles added, unintentionally imitating Scourge's way of speaking at the start before getting depressed at his past again.

There was an awkward silence, before Patch asked, " Do you feel, sorry, for me? " uncomfortable again. That clued him into the fact that he had actually stopped feeling uncomfortable about the kid holding his hand for comfort, which embarrassed him even more. Miles, worried that he was in trouble, said awkwardly, " I-I'm sorry… You're my frien… friend… You've never hurt me! You're important to me! Of course I care about you. I can respect you and sympathize with you at the same time, as hard as I know that can be to believe… "

After a silence where Patch dwelled on what he just heard, stunned because he had never heard someone so blatantly say they cared about him before, he sighed, and questioned, " Can you keep a secret? " Caught off guard by the question, Miles was quiet for a moment before saying in confusion, " I keep plenty. What's yours? " Patch looked around unhappily before admitting, " It's fake… The patch is, it's just for show. " He quickly lifted the eye-patch up to show Miles, who was able to see his face clearly in the dark by that point.

" Really? That's great! Oh, thank goodness! So it's all a part of looking cool! Like with the leather jacket and sunglasses. Even I'd never go that far! Couldn't risk the lack of depth perception and whatnot backfiring on me. You're brave! " Miles responded happily. " I guess I am! " Patch replied confidently, trying to take that compliment since he might never hear that ever again.

" It could have its advantages, making people believe you have a disadvantage like that. And come to think of it… if you're keeping that eye in darkness all day, that'll mean it's especially good at seeing in the dark whenever you need it! Hey, you can just put the patch over the other eye and get instant night vision! We don't have to wait to start the stealing after all! " Miles said with his other hand on his chin, getting excited at coming up with a plan.

Patch was stunned at first, realizing that the child had for the first time since he knew him come up with an evil plan worthy of his genius. " Maybe he really is smart after all, " Patch thought in French, smiling in respect for him. " T-That is how it works, right? Or does the eye actually stop working from lack of use and ironically make the patch actually not for show? " Miles then said unhappily, doubting himself right away. Patch wondered if the true reason he wasn't showing his genius intellect as often was for exactly that reason, that he was so quick to doubt himself and dismiss what he came up with before even saying it, and it wasn't hard to figure out why.

" Non, you are right, kiddo. I can take good advantage of this, " he reassured him with a light pat on the shoulder, and let go of his hand to get off the couch and carry out the plan, with Miles letting go of his hand at last.

From that day forwards, the two of them formed a bond that could last a lifetime, one that even ended up eclipsing Miles' loyalty to Scourge, as Scourge was making it increasingly and irritatingly clear that he mostly viewed him as a child and found it cooler to get his affection from a girlfriend. 

Boomer would join the gang later as a result of Alicia being impressed by his engineering skills, and Miles was intimidated by him at first, being scared by how he seemed to tower over him, looked more bulky and muscular than the rest of the gang, and came off as a bit stand-offish and serious. Eventually, they would get to talking as Alicia forced the two of them to spend time together in the lab, and Miles and Boomer appreciated having a fellow genius in the gang, but when it came right down to it, Boomer was considered the smart one, not him. 

Miles was self-conscious of his lack of education and ignorance of a lot of common knowledge, and wasn't confident and brave enough to get himself known for intelligent plans and the like, so his genius, which he only really expressed through being a musical prodigy, was fairly unknown and subtle for a long time. He could only speak with a large vocabulary to make it clear, and even then, people still didn't take him seriously. 

Ultimately, he was valued in the gang for his loyalty, compassion and dedication, not for his intelligence. It didn't help that knowing that they would be carrying out plans he personally thought up and told them about would only make him fully responsible for whatever evil things they would do carrying the plan out, another factor that discouraged Miles from helping them out with his intellect. 

Unlike Boomer and Tails, Miles had no interest in engineering, finding it too risky to attempt when he could potentially burn himself welding or something like that, and Boomer didn't fail to notice how nervous he was around crowbars and even rulers. But despite the lack of experience and passion for what he considered to be only Boomer's thing, he still did a relatively flawless job following instructions when he was ordered to help Boomer out with engineering – like repairing stolen globe posts for Scourge much later. 

Months later, as the result of a fight, Miles had been given a head injury, and was taken to the hospital for an MRI. Hours later, he was back at home and was sitting on his bed when he heard the phone ring in the living room, and discreetly snuck down the hallway and hid behind the corner of the wall as Alicia picked up the phone. He had a feeling that the phone call would be about him, and out of sheer curiosity and impatience, he wanted to find out as fast as possible what the results of his own brain scan were. " Hello? " Alicia said answering the phone. Fortunately for him, she put the doctor on speakerphone so that the rest of the gang would be able to hear what he had to say, crowding around her with either worried or stressed out expressions. 

" We have the results of the MRI. You may want to sit down, " the doctor said over the phone, his voice sounding slightly strange from coming out of a phone. Miles felt a pit in his stomach and a chill down his spine as he started worrying about what kind of brain damage he might have had, and tried to ignore the aching beneath the bandage on his head as all of his friends sat down on the couch together. The doctor said nervously, " I'm, not quite sure how to put this delicately… " clearly concerned about the reactions of the princess and her personal soldiers. " Just say it! Does he have a concussion, brain damage? What's wrong?! " Alicia ordered abruptly, trying to mask her growing anxiety with a curt tone of voice.

" Okay, well, no, " the doctor replied nervously, and everyone in the room from Scourge to Boomer was relieved and relaxed at hearing that, with the exception of Buns, who didn't really care, and Alicia, who remembered that she had been warned of bad news, and was angry at the fact that from her point of view, the doctor had gotten her worked up over nothing. " Then why are you talking like something's wrong?! " she questioned, her pupils shrunken from fear. 

" Because there is! The brain scan has revealed to us that there's something seriously wrong that has nothing to do with his injury. We've found some abnormalities in his neural structure that might have been a strong influence on his past behavior! " the doctor explained nervously, trying to get everything out as quickly as possible to get it over with. He had been trying as hard as he could to sound professional, but the members of the Suppression Squad, known as the Freedom Fighters back then, had a reputation for being overprotective of their youngest member, and might not be so willing to accept what he was going to say. " What's wrong with him? No more beating around the bush, no more putting it off, just say it! " Alicia questioned more sternly, as everyone in the room prepared to listen intently to his answer.

" His hippocampus is 20% smaller than it should be, " the doctor started with, filling everyone who heard him with dread. He continued, " That's the part of his brain responsible for turning short-term memories into long-term ones, and for figuring out when exactly memories have taken place in a person's life. Needless to say, it's very important, and it's not normal for it to just shrink in size. It's a sign that the person has experienced an extremely high level of stress for an extended period of time from traumatic events in his life. His hippocampus is less functional, and his amygdala, which process how you feel about memories, are abnormally large, especially the fear-eliciting one on the right. Both of these problems are neurological signs of post traumatic stress disorder! " 

" PTSD? " Alicia said, looking stunned with a horrified look in her eyes. She didn't want to believe it. There was a silence in the room from the fact that no one in the gang was comfortable with the revelation and felt more sympathy for him than they had ever before; even Buns, who had her arms crossed with a disrespectful look, had to awkwardly avoid eye contact trying to pretend that she didn't care. Scourge wasn't surprised at all, his eyes downcast and melancholic at the doctor confirming what he already knew, while Patch and Boomer seemed to stare off into the distance with worried looks on their faces. After hearing that there was something seriously wrong with him, just like he had always been afraid of, Miles stared at the wall in front of him devastated with a horrified expression. He felt like he was about to cry. 

" PTSD? P-Post traumatic stress disorder? Y-You mean to tell me you think he has something wrong with him?! " Alicia replied angrily, her voice slightly faltering with concern as she tried to stay in denial the best that she could. " I'm sorry, your Majesty, but I can't ignore the truth. If you want to get further testing for him and see a professional to prove me wrong- " the doctor said unhappily, and she interrupted him, " No! Are you crazy?! He'd never want to do that! How do you think he'll react?! Don't you think he feels different enough as it is?! He's been treated like a freak for his entire life! The last thing Miles needs is another label! " 

" Don't you want to help him?! He has a severe anxiety disorder! I think with the right medication, he could finally- " " No! He'll never agree to that! He's fine! He's been getting along fine and he doesn't need to deal with another label! " Alicia hung up the phone and stormed off heading to her room.

Tears welled up in Miles' eyes and he sat down on the floor as quiet as he could. It was true. It all made sense now. Looking back on his own irrational behavior, it explained everything about why even a year after his life had gotten better, he was still acting as if the most horrible experiences of his life had just happened. Long after he had gotten past the point where he should've been easily reminded of his past, it was still a touchy subject for him that he was easily reminded of, and when something reminded him of it too much, he got lost in his memories and became overwhelmed with panic and fear, acting as if it was happening again. 

He was trapped in the past, and set off by any reminders. Scourge had even slipped up and called them triggers, and from looking back on his life, it all made sense. He was disgusted with himself. " It was bad enough that the way I looked made me a freak! " he thought, ashamed and humiliated. " I really am insane… " he thought sadly, knowing that he had been given yet another insecurity to add to the pile. He wished he had never tried to find out what his results were.  
He felt horrible. He felt sick on the inside from knowing for a fact that he wasn't thinking clearly anymore, and with his self-confidence lower than it had been in years, he wondered if he was insane. Before, Miles at least had the comfort of believing in his own mental aptitude, having convinced himself he was a genius long before his music teacher had confirmed it, but now he was losing faith in even that. 

The only positive thing to come out of the situation was that Scourge found out he was upset from trying to go after Alicia. With one look at the heartbroken child drying his tears on the floor, he instinctively gave him a warm embrace, and said to him something that he would always remember. " I know, kiddo. I knew it all along. And nothin's gonna change. We all love ya just the same. I promise. " With that, he gave him a quick kiss on the forehead, and let go of him so that a concerned Patch could give him the exact same embrace. It wasn't long before everyone in the gang was comforting him. 

Later on, Alicia would break up with Scourge from irritation with his immaturity and would become more interested in Patch if anything, but still kept him around to take advantage of his abilities for the gang, and Scourge ended up moving onto Buns, using complaining about Alicia's nagging and the other members of the gang as a way to bond with her from shared resentment. That of course, led to him cheating on her with Alicia and Anti-Penelope, as his lonely desperation to fill in the void that a lack of affection from his parents left in him caused him to want to get as much of it as possible, even if it meant having his cake and eating it too. 

This cheating only got Scourge even more unpopular in the gang, when he was becoming hated already thanks to them recognizing his lack of maturity and how he was annoying Miles, with both accidentally condescending treatment for being a kid, and with unknowingly neglecting him. Pretty soon, they wanted him out, and by that point, Miles had formed a blind loyalty to a group of people who ultimately loved him for longer than Scourge ever did. 

And as his respect for Scourge dwindled, he was happy to go along with his gang's idea to mostly ditch the leather jackets they wore before to look more different from him, with Miles agreeing to wear a jacket that was red as a menacing color, but he could never bring himself to get rid of the spiked bracelets he gave him. It frustrated him, as they were just as much of a memento of the old Scourge as his leather jacket was, and projected the same fake persona, but he just couldn't bring himself to take them off.   
Something he could do at least was try to speak more intelligently, as he eventually started hearing that a lot of the way he talked was from him picking up on Scourge's way of speaking, like saying, " cool, " and, " badass, " and, " No way! " So he gradually started awkwardly trying to speak in a more sophisticated manner more often, with a preference for big words and a smart vocabulary. 

He couldn't make the change all in one day of course, as he still said, " No way! " when the Sonic he mistook for Scourge was about to run in a circle around him free from the net, and called his female friends, " girls, " just like Scourge would've before getting him into the net. But over time, he tried his best to try and hide the profound influence Scourge had on his life, emphasizing how it was the Suppression Squad who raised him for longer than Scourge ever did. 

Despite Scourge not being liked by the gang, they still got mad at him for " ditching " them as well as cheating, and there was a good reason for that. Scourge leaving the vicinity of the gang and not telling them why made Miles believe that he was abandoning him out of disgust, or at least wanted a break from him out of disrespect. As a result, every time he felt abandoned by Scourge, he ended up breaking down crying, and became furious with him for ditching him, while also sad and depressed and insecure, blaming himself and his issues, believing that he was just too depressing and overwhelming of a friend and that Scourge had outgrown having a kid as a friend. 

Because of all that, Miles was very devastated and frustrated at Scourge being caught by the zone cops for the first time and replaced by Anti-Geoffrey, someone he didn't even know. From combining that emotional outburst at a feeling of abandonment with him explaining that Scourge was the only parental figure he had, it became clear to the rest of the gang that his parents abandoned him.

He hated how much Scourge would ditch them to do his own thing, as if he didn't really love him enough to want him in on his plans, something that started when Robo-Robotnik suddenly summoned him into his dimension to manipulate his desire to feel more in control. Miles pretended on the surface to be fine with Scourge being caught by the zone cops after that, and replaced briefly with some guy he didn't know or trust. 

But in private, he was devastated at how he had truly left them, and how the fact that things didn't feel radically different without him only served to drive home how much he had been neglecting him recently. He felt abandoned every time Scourge ditched them without even so much as an excuse, and broke down crying as a wild thunderstorm raged on. It was one of the things Antoine would later have to get used to, as he had never experienced so many lightning storms in his life.


End file.
